6 


v 


4     O-fv^7^^ 


SPRECKELS 


* 


BUMET'S  NOTES. 


NOTES 


ON    THE 


EARLY   SETTLEMENT 


OF   THE 


NORTH-WESTERN    TERRITORY. 


CINCINNATI: 
DERBY,  BRADLEY  &  CO.,  PUBLISHERS. 

1847. 


SPRECKELS 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1847, 

BY    DERBY,    BRADLEY    &    CO. 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  for  the  District  of  Ohio. 


CINCINNATI: 

Morgan   %  Overend,   Printers. 


M  E  M  O  R  A  N  D  U  M 


About  ten  years  ago,  the  writer  of  the  following  chap- 
ters was  requested  by  a  friend,  to  commit  to  paper,  a  bio- 
graphical sketch  of  himself,  accompanied  by  a  statement 
of  such  facts  and  incidents  relating  to  the  early  settlement 
of  the  North- Western  Territory,  as  were  within  his  recol- 
lection, and  might  be  considered  worth  preserving. 

It  was  foreseen  that  the  execution  of  such  a  request, 
would  necessarily  be  attended  with  delicacy  and  difficulty. 
Many  of  the  matters  embraced  in  it,  related,  more  or  less, 
to  himself,  and  he  did  not  believe  that  they  could  be  of 
much  interest,  even  to  friends  ;  and  certainly,  of  much  less 
to  the  public  generally.  Besides,  many  occurrences  in  the 
early  settlement  of  the  country,  which  were  of  some  im- 
portance at  the  time,  had  escaped  his  recollection,  or 
were  imperfectly  remembered. 

The  request,  however,  was  complied  with,  in  a  series 
of  letters,  written  in  1837,  which  were  laid  before  the  His- 
torical Society  of  Ohio,  by  the  gentleman  to  whom  they 
were  addressed,  and  ordered  to  be  published  among  the 
transactions  of  the  institution. 


101474 


viii  MEMORANDUM. 

That  book  being  out  of  print,  the  writer  has  been  urged, 
by  many  of  his  personal  friends,  and  by  others,  to  revise, 
enlarge,  and  put  them  in  a  more  convenient  form  for 
publication.  He  consented  to  do  so,  and  the  result  is 
now  submitted  to  the  public.  The  work  claims  for  itself, 
nothing  more  of  merit,  than  belongs  to  a  collection  of  au- 
thentic, detached,  facts ;  set  down  with  more  regard  to 
truth,  than  to  polish  of  style,  or  chronological  arrangement; 
from  which  the  historian  may  select  materials  for  future 
use. 

The  writer  does  not  suppose,  that  any  of  the  occurren- 
ces recited  in  the  work,  derive  additional  consequence  from 
the  fact,  that  he  has  been  in  any  way  connected  with  them. 
His  name  is  mentioned,  because  the  omission  of  it  might 
render  the  narrative  obscure,  and  less  intelligible.  The 
facts  are  equally  interesting,  be  the  adventurer  who  he 
may.     "  Mutato  nomine,  de  te  fabula  narraturP 


CONTENTS. 


Memorandum,  7 

INTRODUCTION. 

The  Grandfather  and  Father  of  the  author. — Where  born  and  educated. — 
The  latter,  Dr.  Wm.  Burnet,  engaged  in  the  revolutionary  struggle  in 
1774. — Was  chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety. — Treatment 
of  the  Tories. — Dr.  B.  elected  to  Congress. — Appointed  Physician  and 
Surgeon  General  of  the  eastern  department,  April,  1777. — Stationed  at 
West  Point  when  the  treason  of  Arnold  was  discovered. — Capture  of 
Major  Andre. — Measures  to  procure  his  liberation. — Threats  used. — 
Offer  to  exchange  him  for  Arnold. — Firmness  of  Washington. — Deli- 
cate treatment  of  Andre. — Tried,  convicted  and  hung. — Note. — Mili- 
tary movements  on  Long  Island. — York  Island. — Retreat  to  the  Dela- 
ware.— Battle  of  Trenton. — Battle  of  Princeton. — American  army  put 
in  winter  quarters. — Attempts  to  injure  the  character  of  Washington. — 
His  character  defended-  17 


CHAPTER  I. 

Population  of  the  Territory  in  1795-6. — Description  of  Cincinnati  at  that 
time.— ►Progress  of  settlement  from  1788  to  1800. — Public  buildings. — 
Social  influence  of  the  garrison. — Ordinance  of  1787. — Its  provisions. — 
Appointment  of  officers  under  it. — Treaty  of  Fort  Harmar. — Re-organi- 
zation of  the  Territorial  Government. — Legislation  of  the  Governor  and 
Judges. — The  Maxwell  Code.  31 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    II. 

Western  Pioneers  chiefly  Revolutionary  characters. — Colony  from  New 
England  in  1787. — Formed  by  Cutler,  Sargent  &  Co. — Arrive  at  the 
Yoghigany  in  the  fall  of  1787. — Encamp  for  the  winter. — Reach  Ma- 
rietta in  April  1788. — Block-house  erected. —  A  school  and  a  church 
established. — Gen.  R.  Putnam  leader  of  the  party. — His  character. — His 
appointment  to  office. — Poverty  of  Revolutionary  officers  drove  them  to 
emigrate. — Their  sufferings. — Settlement  under  Major  Stites,  at  Colum- 
bia.— Under  Denman  &  Co.  at  Cincinnati. — Under  Judge  Symmes,  at 
North  Bend. — Losanteville,  intended  name  of  a  town  never  laid  out. — 
Troops  sent  by  Gen.  Harmar,  to  the  Miami  settlements. — Where  sta- 
tioned.— Their  behavior. — Attacked  by  the  Indians  at  North  Bend. — 
Major  Mills  severely  wounded. —  Villages  laid  out. —  Donation  lots. — 
Interview  of  Symmes  with  the  Indians. — Settlement  at  Columbia  plun- 
dered.— Captain  Flinn  taken  prisoner. — Made  his  escape. — Comparative 
strength  of  the  settlements  at  the  Miamies. — Fort  Washington  built  by 
Major  Doughty. — Judicial  Courts  first  established. — Anterior  arrange- 
ments for  administering  Justice. — Indian  hostilities. —  Complaints  of 
Judge  Symmes  against  General  Hurmar  for  withholding  protection. — 
Temerity  of  the  Pioneers  and  the  Troops.  12 


CHAPTER    III. 

Counties  in  the  Territory. — Their  Seats  of  Justice  and  Courts. — The  Gen- 
eral Court. — Its  powers. — Its  usurpations  as  Legislators. — Fatigue  and 
exposure  of  the  Bar. — Extent  of  their  circuit. — A  game  of  Indian  foot- 
ball.— Journey  from  Cincinnati  to  Vincennes,  in  December,  1799. — 
Gen.  George  Rogers  Clark. — His  achievements  and  victories. — Hi*  con- 
quests the  chief  ground  of  the  American  claim  to  the  North-western 
Territory. — Embarrassments  of  his  situation. — His  expedients  to  rap- 
port his  troops. — Ingratitude  of  tin   Government.  GS 


CHAPTER    IV. 

Indian  depredationi  and  murders. — Alarm  in  the  Frontier  Settlements. — 
Letter  of  Judge  fanes  to  the  President.— Other  letters  of  a  similar  char- 
acter.— Strong  hold  «>f  the  Indians  on  the  <  Hilo,  near  the  Scioto  river. — 


CONTENTS.  Xi 

Inattention  of  the  Government  complained  of. — Expedition  of  General 
Scott. — Indian  depredations  continued. — Communication  from  Gov.  St. 
Clair  to  the  commandant  at  Detroit. — Unsuccessful  embassy  of  M. 
Gameline,  to  the  Indians. — Increase  of  the  military  force. — Arrival  of 
troops  at  Fort  Washington. — Inefficient  character  of  the  Militia. — Har- 
mar's  campaign. — Its  success. — And  subsequent  disasters,  denominated 
a  defeat. — Acquitted  by  Report  of  Board  of  Inquiry. — Murder  of  Hardin 
and  Trueman. — Observations  on  the  Campaign. — List  of  officers  killed.     83 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  early  adventurers  to  the  Miami  Purchase. — Stations  erected. — At- 
tacked by  the  Indians. — Communications  of  President  Washington  to 
Congress. —  Statement  showing  the  weakness  of  the  Ohio  Company's 
settlement. — Gen.  Scott's  expedition  against  the  Wabash  Indians. — Its 
celerity  and  success. — Colonel  Wilkinson's  expedition  against  the  same 
tribes. — Conducted  with  skill  and  success. — Organization  of  Gen.  St. 
Clair's  army. — Encamped  at  Ludlow's  Station. — Its  number. — The 
campaign. — The  cause  of  the  defeat. — Court  of  Inquiry. — The  Gen- 
eral acquitted  of  all  censure.  108 


CHAPTER    VI. 

Situation  of  affairs  on  the  Frontier. — General  Wayne  appointed  to  the 
command. — Gallant  engagement  of  Major  Adair  with  the  Indians. — 
Commissioners  appointed  to  treat  with  the  North-western  tribes. — 
Their  instructions. —  Their  negotiations. —  Improper  interference  of 
British    officers  and  agents.— Failure  of  the  negotiation.  132 


CHAPTER   VII. 

Condition  of  the  Western  Army  in  1793.— Encampment  at  Hobson's 
Choice. — Discipline  of  the  army. — Order  of  march. — Fortifications  at 
Greenville. — Indians  attack  Fort  Recovery. — Repulsed  with  very  heavy 
loss. — Proofs  of  British  influence  over  the  Indians. — Lieutenant  Lowery 
attacked. — Defeated. — Killed.  155 


xii  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Gen.  Wayne's  campaign  of  1794.— Battle  of  the  20th  of  August,  at  the 
foot  of  the  Rapids. — Gen.  Wayne's  correspondence  with  the  command- 
ant of  the  British  Fort. — Army  return  to  Fort  Defiance. — From  thence 
to  the  Miami  villages. — Fort  Wayne  huilt. — Kentucky  volunteers  dis- 
charged.— Residue  of  the  army  proceed  to  Greenville. — Note. — The 
number  and  tribes  of  the  Indians  engaged  in  the  battle  of  the  20th  of 
August. — Aid  furnished  them  by  the  British. — Influence  of  British 
agents  ascertained.  167 


CHAPTER    IX. 

Weakness  of  the  American  army. — Intrigues  of  the  English  agents  with 
the  Indians. — Communications  to  Gen.  Wayne  from  Chiefs  of  different 
tribes. —  His  answers. — Proposals  for  a  conference  at  Greenville. — The 
Shawanese  propose  to  remove  west  of  the  Mississippi.  183 


CHAPTER    X. 

State  of  the  American  army  and  of  the  Indians,  in  1794-5. — Indians 
begin  to  collect  at  Greenville. — Preliminary  conferences.  192 


CHAPTER    XI. 

Commencement  of  the  negotiations  in  full  council. — Introductory  speech 
of  General  Wayne. — Speeches  of  the  Chiefs  of  the  different  tribes. — 
Progress  of  the  negotiations.  20G 


CHAPTER    XII. 

Treaty  of  Greenville  concluded,  ligned  and  ratified. — Numbers  of  the 
different  tribes  of  Indians  parties  tu  the  treaty. — Proclamation  of  Gen. 
Wayne.  236 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

Surrender  of   tin-    North-western   posts   by  the  British,  in    1796. —  Made  to 

General  Waj  tie,  appointed  for  that  purpose. — Death  of  General  Wayne. 


CONTENTS.  x[[[ 

— Sketch  of  his  life. — Detroit. — Its  Commerce  and  Society. — Their  hos- 
pitality.— Celebration  of  the  king's  birth-day  at  Sandwich. — General 
invitation  to  the  Americans  at  Detroit,  including  the  General  Court 
and  the  Bar. — Note. — Gen.  Wilkinson's  charges  against  Gen.  Wayne. — 
Unfounded. — Contrast  between  the  two  men. — Their  controversies. — 
Their  effect  on  the  army. — The  officers  take  sides. — Two  parties  form- 
ed.— Note. — Canadian  French  at  and  near  Detroit. — Their  character. — 
Their  habits. — Their  objections  to  free  government. — Delays  in  admin- 
istering justice. — Judicial  decisions  of  the  military  commandants — Ac- 
ceptable to  the  French  inhabitants. — Pawnee  Indians  bought  and  sold 
as  slaves.  275 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

Five  thousand  white  males  in  the  Territory. — Proclamation  of  the  Gov- 
ernor— Delegates  to  the  Assembly  elected. — Second  grade  of  Territorial 
Government  organized. — Members  of  the  first  Territorial  Legislature. — 
Their  Character — Talents — Employments. — Movements  of  Colonel 
Burr. — Mr.  Smith  implicated. — Probably  without  cause. — Burr's  visit  to 
Cincinnati. — Notice  taken  of  him. — War  with  Spain  contemplated. — 
May  account,  probably,  for  Burr's  movements. — Principles  of  the  Fed- 
eral party. — Their  agency  in  forming  and  adopting  the  Federal  Consti- 
tution.— Condition  and  character  of  the  country  improved  by  their 
measures. — Origin  of  their  name. — Have  long  ceased  to  exist  as  a  party.  288 


CHAPTER   XV. 

Legislature  assemble  at  Cincinnati. — Their  proceedings. — Harrison  elected 
Delegate  to  Congress. — His  instructions. — His  course  in  Congress  ap- 
proved— Territory  divided. — Harrison  appointed  Governor. — The  Ordi- 
nance of  1787. — Its  provisions. — Liberty,  civil  and  religious,  secured. — 
Territorial  code  defective. — Remedied  by  the  Legislature. — French  in- 
habitants.— Their  common  fields. — Burning  of  Prairies. — Injury  result- 
ing.— Regulated. — Jurisdiction  on  the  Ohio  River. — Claims  of  Ken- 
tucky.— Inconveniences. — Act  of  the  Legislature  touching  it. — Com- 
pact between  Virginia  and  Kentucky. — Legislation  of  the  Governor  and 
Judges. — Of  the  General  Assembly. — Education  encouraged. — Protec- 
tion of  the  Indians. — Vetoes  of  the  Governor. —  Property  qualifica- 
tion.— Limited  slavery. — Attempt  to  introduce  it. — Auditor's  Certifi- 
cates.— Address  of  the  General  Assembly,  complimentary  to  President 
Adams.  300 


xiv  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

Congress  remove  the  Seat  of  Government  to  Chillicothe. — Considered  an 
usurpation  of  power. — Meeting  of  the  Assembly. — Governor's  ad- 
dress.— Replies  of  the  two  Houses. — Proceedings  of  the  Assembly. — 
Law  to  protect  the  Indians. — Connecticut  Reserve. — Controversy  set- 
tled.— Governor  and  Assembly  differ  in  opinion. — His  term  of  office 
about  to  expire. — Power  of  the  Secretary  to  act,  in  that  case,  denied. — 
Assembly  prorogued.  ^16 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

Meeting  of  the  General  Assembly. — Their  proceedings. — Mob  in  Chilli- 
cothe.— Its  object. — Omission  of  the  police  to  interfere. — Seat  of  Gov- 
ernment removed.  328 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

Population  of  the  Eastern  Division  in  1802. — Steps  to  obtain  a  State 
Government. — Application  to  Congress  for  permission  to  call  a  Con- 
vention.— Permission  given  on  conditions. — Their  oppressive  charac- 
ter.— Opposition  to  the  measure. — On  what  grounds. — Right  to  tax  pub- 
lic lands  relinquished. — Loss  sustained  by  it. —  State  of  parties. — Note. 
— Excitement  at  Detroit. — Opposition  to  the  law  for  erecting  a  new 
State. — Correspondence  on  the  subject. —  Note. — Tho  friends  of  a  State 
Government  become  the  majority. — The  harmony  formerly  existing 
broken  up. — Causes  of  the  change. — Origin  of  party  spirit. — Ambitious 
aspirants. — Their  misrepresentations.  335 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

Detail!  of  the  State  Convention. — Its  members.— The  formation  of  the 
Constitution.— The  question  <>f  Slavery. — The  Northern  boundary* — 

Refusal  tO  -u limit  tho  Constitution  to  the  people. — Reflections.  350 


CONTENTS.  xv 


CHAPTER   XX. 


Sketch  of  the  life  of  Gov.  St.  Clair. — His  military  services  in  Canada  and 
the  United  States. — Governor  of  the  North-western  Territory. — Disa- 
greement with  the  Legislature. — His  general  character. — His  embar- 
rassments and  poverty. — Annuity  granted  by  Pennsylvania. — His  death.  370 


CHAPTER   XXI. 

Character  of  the  North-western  Indians. — Misrepresentations  refuted. — 
Their  intercourse  with  the  white  people. — Its  contaminating  influence. 
— Their  degeneracy. — Their  final  expulsion  from  the  land  of  their 
nativity.  384 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Early  land  laws  injudicious. — Sold  in  very  large  tracts. — Few  purcha- 
sers.— Settlement  of  the  country  retarded. — Laws  modified. — Sales  in 
small  tracts. — Population  multiplied. — State  improvements  advanced. — 
Commerce  of  little  value  for  want  of  a  market. — Produce  of  the  country 
consumed  in  the  expense  of  transportation. — Miami  Exporting  Com- 
pany got  up. — Its  objects. — Introduction  of  barges. — Schemes  to  im- 
prove the  navigation  of  the  Falls. — Canal  attempted  on  the  Indiana 
side. — Operations  of  the  Branch  Bank  of  the  United  States  at  Cincin- 
nati.— Tyrannical  proceedings  of  the  Agent  of  the  parent  Board. — Im- 
mense sacrifice  of  private  property.  394 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 

Contract  of  Judge  Symmes  with  the  Board  of  Treasury. — His  propo- 
sition to  purchase  two  millions  of  acres,  entitling  him  to  College  lands. 
— Deposite  of  money  on  account. — Misunderstanding  with  Congress. — 
Contract  closed  by  agents  for  one  million  of  acres. —  College  lands 
thereby  relinquished. — Terms  of  sale  and  settlement  established. — Pub- 
lished at  Trenton. — Progress  of  the  Miami  settlements. — History  of  the 
College  township.  412 


xvi  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

Ancient  artificial  structures  in  Cincinnati. — Articles  found  in  them. — 
Perpetuation  of  vegetable  productions. — Alluvial  deposit  at  Cincinnati. 
— How  produced. — Note. — Reflections  on  the  Mosaic  account  of  crea-  . 
tion. — Probable  change  in  the  course  of  the  Big  Miami. — How  produced. 
— Navigation  of  the  Mississippi  river. — Intrigues  with  the  Spanish  offi- 
cers.— The  territory  of  Mississippi  established. — Introduction  of  Ameri- 
can Courts. — Suits  at  law  multiply. — Practice  profitable.  434 


CHAPTER    XXV. 

Sale  of  public  lands  on  credit. — Debts  due  to  Government  from  pur- 
chasers.— Exceeding  twenty  millions  of  dollars. — Embarrassments  in 
the  Western  Country. — Purchasers  unable  to  pay. — Lands  on  the  eve 
of  forfeiture. — Resistance  to  the  execution  of  the  land  laws  apprehend- 
ed.— A  plan  for  relief  concerted  at  Cincinnati. — Memorial  to  Congress 
drawn. — Printed,  and  circulated  through  the  entire  West. — The  law  of 
1821  passed,  in  conformity  with  the  memorial. — Grant  of  lands  to  Ohio, 
for  Canal  purposes. — Conditions  annexed. — Not  assented  to. — Grant 
lost. — In  1829-30,  the  conditions  repealed,  and  a  further  grant  made. 
— Miami  Extension  completed. — Simon  Kenton. — Biographical  sketches 
of  him.  450 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 

Mr.  John  Reily. — Serves  in  the  Army  of  the  South  during  the  Revolu- 
tion.— His    claim,  to    the    gratitude   of  the   country. — Removes  to  (lie 

North-western    Territory. — View    of   the    Territory. Pioneer    lit'-. — 

Sketch  of  the  services  of  Mr.  Reily  in  the  West — Sis  uprightness  and 
integrity. — Neglect  of  the  pioneers  to  preserve  accurate  records. — The 
ill  consequences.  L6U 


INTRODUCTION. 


PRELIMINARY    CHAPTER. 

The  grandfather  and  father  of  the  author. — Where  born  and  educated. — The 
latter,  engaged  in  the  Revolutionary  struggle  in  1774. — Was  chairman  of 
the  Committee  of  Public  Safety. — Treatment  of  the  Tories. — Dr.  B.  elected 
to  Congress. — Appointed  Physician  and  Surgeon  General  of  the  eastern  de- 
partment, April,  1777.— Stationed  at  West  Point  when  the  treason  of  Arnold 
was  discovered. — Capture  of  Major  Andre. — Measures  to  procure  his  libera- 
tion.— Threats  used. —  Offer  to  exchange  him  for  Arnold. — Firmness  of 
Washington. — Delicate  treatment  of  Andre. — Tried,  convicted  and  hung. — 
Military  movements  on  Long  Island. — York  Island. — Retreat  to  the  Dela- 
ware.— Battle  of  Trenton. — Battle  of  Princeton. — American  army  put  in 
winter  quarters. — Attempts  to  injure  the  character  of  Washington. — His 
character  defended. 

The  writer  of  the  following  chapters  is  the  son  of  Dr. 
William  Burnet,  the  elder,  of  Newark,  New  Jersey;  and 
the  grandson  of  Dr.  Ichabod  Burnet,  a  native  of  Scotland, 
who  was  educated  at  Edinburgh — -removed  to  America 
soon  after  his  education  was  finished,  and  settled  at  Eliza- 
bethtown,  in  the  province  of  New  Jersey;  where  he  prac- 
ticed his  profession  with  great  success,  as  a  physician  and 
surgeon,  till  1773,  when  he  died  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty  years. 

His  only  son,  William,  was  born  in  1730  —  educated  at 
Nassau  Hall,  during  the  presidency  of  the  Reverend  Aaron 
Burr — and  graduated  in  1749,  before  the  institution  was 
removed  to  Princeton. 

He  studied  medicine  under  Dr.  Staats,  of  New  York,  and 
practiced  it  with  assiduity  and  success,  till  the  difficulties 
2 


18  INTRODUCTION. 

with  the  Mother  Country  became  alarmingly  serious. 
Being  a  high-toned  Whig,  he  took  an  active  part  in  the 
measures  of  resistance  which  were  resorted  to,  against  the 
oppressive  proceedings  of  the  British  government. 

When  the  judicial  courts  of  the  province  were  closed 
and  the  regular  administration  of  justice  suspended,  by  a 
ministerial  order,  he  relinquished  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession, which  was  extensive  and  lucrative,  and  took  part 
in  the  political  movements  of  the  day,  with  great  activity 
and  zeal. 

The  protection  of  law  having  been  withdrawn,  by  closing 
the  judicial  tribunals  of  the  colony,  the  people  assumed  the 
reins  of  government  from  necessity,  and  administered  law 
and  justice  as  well  as  they  could,  circumstanced  as  they 
were. 

In  some  places  it  was  done  by  county  arrangements,  and 
in  others  by  township  committees.  In  Newark,  as  a  tem- 
porary expedient,  the  power  was  vested  in  a  "  Committee 
of  Public  Safety,"  appointed  by  the  people  of  the  township. 

Similar  measures  of  precaution  were  necessarily  resorted 
to  throughout  the  province ;  each  county,  town  or  neighbor- 
hood, devising  and  pursuing  its  own  plan.  The  powers 
confided  to  these  committees  were  dictatorial;  and  the  en- 
tire whig  population  stood  pledged  to  enforce  their  decis- 
ions. The  tories  were  numerous,  and  had  full  confidence 
that  the  British  troops  would  overrun  the  country,  and 
reduce  it  to  obedience,  without  encountering  any  serious 
resistance.  They  were  therefore  bold  and  insolent,  and  by 
their  movements  the  public  peace  was  constantly  endan- 
gered, and  was  preserved  only  by  the  vigorous  action  of 
those  conservative  bodies. 

The  committee  appointed  at  Newark,  of  which  Dr. 
Burnet  was  chairman,  was  in  session  almost  daily,  bear- 
ing and  deciding  complaints,  and  adjudicating  on  the  vari- 
ous matters  referred  to  them.  Some  of  the  most  obnoxious 
of  the  tories  they  banished :  on  others   they  imposed   fines 


INTRODUCTION.  19 

and  imprisonment,  and  in  some  instances  inflicted  stripes. 
By  this  bold  proceeding  the  disaffected  were  kept  in  check; 
the  whigs  were  pacified,  and  restrained  from  personal  vio- 
lence on  the  loyalists,  who  ridiculed  the  attempt  to  resist 
the  Mother  Country,  and  openly  justified  her  tyrannical 
proceedings. 

The  Newark  committee,  which  consisted  of  three  mem- 
bers, Dr.  Burnet,  Judge  J.  Hedden,  and  Major  S.  Hays,  con- 
tinued in  the  discharge  of  their  duty  till  the  retreat  to  the 
American  army  from  York  Island,  through  the  Jerseys  to  the 
Delaware,  closely  pressed  by  the  enemy,  who  overran  that 
state.     See  note  on  page  22. 

Dr.  Burnet  was  in  the  medical  service  of  the  country, 
from  the  commencement  of  the  contest,  and  was  the  super- 
intendent of  a  Military  Hospital,  established  on  his  own 
responsibility,  in  Newark,  in  the  year  1775.  In  the  winter 
of  1776-7,  the  Legislature  of  New  Jersey  elected  him  a 
member  of  the  Continental  Congress.  Soon  after  he  took 
his  seat,  the  subject  of  the  medical  department  of  the  army 
was  taken  up  in  Congress,  and  a  new  arrangement  adopted. 
The  thirteen  states  were  divided  into  three  districts — the 
southern,  middle,  and  eastern;  and  provision  was  made  for 
a  Physician-general  and  a  Surgeon-general,  in  each;  but 
in  consideration  of  the  strong  claims  of  Dr.  Burnet,  on  the 
score  of  past  services  as  well  as  of  qualificatian,  they  pro- 
vided for  a  Physician  and  Surgeon-general,  in  the  eastern 
district,  and  conferred  the  appointment  on  him.  He  then 
resigned  his  seat  in  Congress,  accepted  the  appointment, 
and  continued  in  the  discharge  of  its  arduous  duties,  till  the 
peace  of  1783. 

He  was  stationed  at  West  Point  when  General  Arnold 
conceived  and  matured  his  plan  to  surrender  that  post  to 
the  enemy,  and  it  so  happened  that  he,  with  a  party  of  the 
officers  of  the  garrison,  were  dining  with  the  General,  when 
the  officer  of  the  day  entered,  and  reported  that  a  spy  had 
been  taken  below,  who  called  himself  John  Anderson.     It 


20  INTRODUCTION. 

was  remarked  by  the  persons  who  were  at  the  table,  that 
this  intelligence,  interesting  to  the  General  as  it  must  have 
been,  produced  no  visible  change  in  his  countenance  or 
behaviour — that  he  continued  in  his  seat  for  some  minutes, 
conversing  as  before — after  which  he  arose,  saying  to  his 
guests,  that  business  required  him  to  be  absent  for  a  short 
time,  and  desiring  them  to  remain  and  enjoy  themselves 
till  his  return.  The  next  intelligence  they  had  of  him  was, 
that  he  was  in  his  barge,  moving  rapidly  to  a  British  ship 
of  war,  the  Vulture,  which  was  lying  at  anchor  a  short 
distance  below  the  Point. 

The  sequel  of  that  treasonable  conspiracy,  is  as  familiar 
to  the  American  ear,  as  "household  words."  All  know 
that  it  terminated  in  the  execution  of  Major  Andre,  the 
Adjutant-general  of  the  British  army,  and  an  Aid-de-camp 
of  Sir  Henry  Clinton.  Very  great  and  strenuous  efforts 
were  made,  both  in  Great  Britain  and  France,  as  well  as 
by  the  Commander-in-chief  of  the  British  army,  to  save  the 
life  of  that  gifted  and  highly  accomplished  officer,  who  was 
connected  with  the  most  distinguished  families  in  England. 

In  reply  to  those  applications,  General  Washington  pro- 
posed to  exchange  Andre  for  Arnold.  That  offer  was  man- 
ifestly unexpected,  and  embarrassing ;  and  gave  rise  to  a 
protracted  and  animated  correspondence  between  the  com- 
manders of  the  two  armies.  Sir  Henry  Clinton  denied  that 
Andre  was  a  spy,  as  he  entered  the  American  lines,  under 
the  protection  of  a  pass,  from  the  General  who  commanded 
in  the  District;  and  intimated,  that  he  should  feel  bound  to 
retaliate,  if  Washington  persisted  in  his  purpose.  The 
American  commander  maintained,  by  fact  and  argument, 
that,  according  to  the  understanding  and  practice  of  all 
nations,  Andre  was  a  spy,  and  that  nothing  woulu  save 
him  from  the  penal  consequences  of  his  crime,  but  the  sur- 
render of  Arnold — on  that  condition  he  would  release  him, 
and  on  no  other.  That  proposition  not  being  accepted,  the 
Commander  in-chief    of   the   American    Army   ordered    a 


INTRODUCTION.  21 

board  of  general  officers  for  the  trial  of  the  prisoner,  of 
which  Major  General  Greene  was  designated  as  the  Presi- 
dent. That  board,  after  a  careful  investigation  of  the 
facts,  reported,  that  Major  Andre  was  a  spy,  and  ought  to 
suffer  death.  In  pursuance  of  that  finding,  he  was  sen- 
tenced to  be  hung  on  the  succeeding  day.  Two  officers 
were  designated  by  the  president  of  the  board,  to  com- 
municate the  intelligence  to  the  unfortunate  Andre,  and 
to  attend  him  to  the  place  of  execution.  One  of  them  was 
Major  Burnet,  one  of  the  Aides-de-camp  of  General  Greene, 
and  the  second  son  of  Dr.  Burnet.  When  the  sentence 
of  the  court  was  communicated  to  the  prisoner,  he  wrote 
to  General  Washington,  requesting  a  change  of  the  sen- 
tence, and  praying  that  he  might  be  shot;  adding  that  if 
that  indulgence  were  granted,  he  could  meet  his  fate  with- 
out a  murmur ;  but  the  circumstances  of  the  case  were  of  a 
character,  to  convince  the  Commander-in-chief  that  he 
could  not  commute  the  punishment,  consistently  with  the 
established  rules  of  martial  law,  and  without  subjecting 
himself  to  the  charge  of  instability,  or  want  of  nerve. 
Major  Andre  heard  the  failure  of  his  application,  with 
calmness,  and  when  the  fatal  hour  came,  he  walked  with 
a  firm  step,  and  composed  countenance,  to  the  platform  of 
the  gallows,  arm-in-arm  between  the  American  officers 
designated  to  attend  him.  The  multitude,  who  witnessed 
the  execution,  unitedly  testified,  that  the  unfortunate  suf- 
ferer met  his  destiny  with  a  calmness  and  composure, 
indicative  of  a  brave,  accomplished  soldier. 

That  West  Point,  the  Gibraltar  of  the  United  States, 
might  be  made  a  cheap  conquest  to  the  enemy,  the  traitor 
had  caused  some  of  the  heavy  cannon  to  be  dismounted, 
and  portions  of  the  masonry  to  be  taken  down,  to  be 
rebuilt,  as  he  pretended,  with  additional  strength.  After 
the  arrival  of  the  Commander-in-chief  at  the  post,  he 
caused  those  treasonable  dilapidations  to  be  repaired,  with- 
out delay. 


22  INTRODUCTION. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  Dr.  Burnet  returned  to  his 
family,  and  devoted  himself  to  agricultural  pursuits.  He 
was  soon  after  appointed  presiding  judge  of  the  court  of 
common  pleas,  by  the  state  legislature.  He  was  also 
chosen  President  of  the  State  Medical  Society,  of  which 
he  had  formerly  been  an  active  member.  Being  a  fine 
classical  scholar,  and  desirous  of  reviving  the  practice  of 
delivering  the  annual  address  in  the  Latin  language, 
which  had  fallen  into  disuse ;  on  taking  the  chair,  he  read 
an  elaborate  essay,  in  Latin,  on  the  proper  use  of  the 
lancet  in  pleuritic  cases. 

While  in  the  enjoyment  of  his  usual  health,  a  violent 
attack  of  erysipelas  in  the  face  and  head,  suddenly  termi- 
nated his  life,  on  the  7th  of  October,  1791,  in  the  sixty-first 
year  of  his  age. 

His  sixth  son,  the  writer  of  these  notes,  was  born  on  the 
22d  of  February,  1770 — was  educated  at  Nassau  Hall, 
under  the  presidency  of  Dr.  Witherspoon,  and  graduated 
in  September,  1791.  Before  he  had  finished  his  collegiate 
course,  he  determined  to  settle  himself  in  the  Miami  coun- 
try, where  his  father  had  made  a  considerable  investment. 
In  the  mean  time  he  completed  his  professional  studies — 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State, 
in  the  spring  of  1796 — and  proceeded  without  delay  to 
Cincinnati,  with  a  full  determination  of  making  it  his  per- 
manent residence,  and  of  rising  or  falling  with  it. 

Whatever  there  may  be  of  interest  in  his  professions! . 
or  political  life,  will  be  sufficiently  developed,  by  the  facts 
connected  with  the  settlement  and  improvement  of  the 
North-western  Territory,  in  which  he  bore  an  early,  and  an 
active  part;  and  in  which  he  endured  a  full  Bhare  of  the 
exposure,  privation  and  Buffering,  which  necessarily  attend 
such  an  enterprise. 

Note. — The  losses  of  the  American  army  on  Long  Island 
and  York  Island,  succeeded  by  tin1  disastrous  battle  of  the 


INTRODUCTION.  23 

White  Plains,  and  the  surrender  of  Forts  Washington  and 
Lee,  with  their  numerous  garrisons,  of  about  a  thousand 
each,  compelled  General  Washington,  late  in  the  fall  of 
1776,  to  cross  the  Hudson,  followed  by  a  victorious  enemy  ; 
and,  after  a  rapid  retreat,  place  his  exhausted  army  in  a 
situation  of  temporary  safety,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Del- 
aware. That  retrograde  movement,  with  the  losses  which 
preceded  it,  produced  a  general  opinion,  that  the  war  was 
at  an  end.  Despondency  took  the  place  of  hope,  and,  un- 
der its  influence,  multitudes,  both  in  East  and  West  Jersey, 
submitted  to  their  fate — renewed  their  oaths  of  allegiance, 
and  took  protections  from  the  British  commander,  as  the 
only  expedient  to  save  their  lives  and  secure  their  pro- 
perty. 

But  the  despair  which  those  events  were  fast  spreading 
over  the  country,  was  of  short  duration.  The  American 
commander,  who  had  adopted  the  maxim,  nil  desperandum^ 
and  had  carried  it  into  practice  through  life,  did  not  yield 
to  the  alarm  which  was  paralizing  the  hopes  of  the  bravest 
of  his  officers.  When  their  lengthened  visages  indicated 
the  feelings  which  harassed  their  minds,  after  they  had 
pitched  their  tents  on  the  frozen  banks  of  the  Delaware,  he 
very  pleasantly  remarked,  that  "the  darkest  part  of  the  night 
was  just  before  the  dawn  of  day."  At  the  time  he  uttered 
that  sentiment,  he  was  projecting  a  plan  to  resume  offen- 
sive operations,  by  a  simultaneous  attack  on  the  enemy  at 
Trenton  and  at  Bordentown. 

Although  the  attempt  against  the  latter  place  failed,  in 
consequence  of  the  floating  ice  in  the  river,  yet  the  main 
attack  on  Trenton,  which  was  led  by  Washington,  in  per- 
son, was  signally  successful. 

The  courage,  and  military  talents,  indicated  by  that  bril- 
liant enterprise,  attracted  universal  attention ;  as  did  the 
more  hazardous  movement  which  speedily  followed,  when 
he  crossed  the  Delaware  a  second  time — eluded  the  vigi- 
lance of  the  enemy  at  Trenton,  and  by  a  midnight  march, 


24  INTRODUCTION. 

took  the  enemy  by  surprise  at  Princeton,  broke  through  their 
line,  captured  many  prisoners  and  much  baggage,  and  pla- 
ced the  remnant  of  his  army  in  secure  and  comfortable 
quarters  in  the  high  lands  of  Jersey. 

Those  masterly  movements  changed  the  aspect  of  the 
war,  and  verified  the  adage,  that  "  all  is  not  lost  that  is  in 
danger."  They  convinced  the  commander  of  the  British 
troops,  that  he  had  at  least,  an  equal  to  contend  with;  and 
that  the  conquest  of  the  colonies,  which  but  a  few  days  be- 
fore, he  believed  to  be  on  the  point  of  consummation,  was 
more  remote  than  he  had  supposed,  at  the  beginning  of  the 
contest. 

Those  desperate  and  successful  achievements,  confirmed 
the  confidence  of  Congress  and  the  people,  in  the  prudence, 
bravery  and  skill  of  the  American  commander,  and  gave 
fresh  hope  and  energy  to  the  friends  of  liberty,  in  every  part 
of  the  country.  A  short  time  before,  they  were  in  a  state 
of  despondency,  and  almost  prepared  to  desist  from  further 
effort  to  oppose  the  oppressions  of  the  mother  country,  and 
to  establish  the  independence  of  their  own. 

Notwithstanding  these  brilliant  achievements,  individuals 
were  found,  ready  to  depreciate  the  character  of  the  Com- 
mander-in-chief. A  very  formidable  effort  of  that  nature 
was  made  by  some  of  the  officers,  under  the  influence  of 
General  Gates,  immediately  after  the  capture  of  Burgoyne. 
A  little  band  of  conspirators  was  then  formed,  who  concert- 
ed a  plan  to  supplant  General  Washington,  and  elevate 
Gates  to  the  chief  command  in  the  army. 

Although  that  attempt  proved  to  be  a  miserable  failure, 
yet  the  persons  engaged  in  it,  became  the  inveterate,  irre- 
concilable enemies  of  Washington,  and  never  afterwards 
permitted  an  opportunity,  to  question  his  talents  or  injure 
his  military  fame,  to  pass  unimproved.  The  achievements 
at  Trenton  and  Princeton,  in  the  winter  of  177(5-7,  were  as 
distinguished  for  military  skill,  as  for  personal  bravery;  and 
were  devised  by  himself,  while  his  associates  in  arms,  en- 


INTRODUCTION.  25 

camped  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware,  were  indulging  in 
hopeless  despair.  At  that  time,  not  a  pen  nor  a  tongue 
had  ventured  to  question  his  wisdom  or  prudence,  nor  was 
any  attempt  of  that  nature  made,  prior  to  the  conspiracy  in 
the  military  family  of  General  Gates.  That  plot  soon  explo- 
ded, and  was  put  down ;  yet  the  persons  engaged  in  it,  still 
cherished  their  hostility,  and  suffered  no  opportunity  of  in- 
flicting a  wound  on  the  feelings,  or  the  fame  of  the  Comman- 
der-in-chief, to  pass  unimproved.  They  awarded  to  others 
the  credit  of  his  plans,  whenever  it  could  be  done  with  the 
least  plausibility.  It  is  remarkable,  that  this  disposition  to 
injure  the  standing  of  General  Washington,  was  most  ac- 
tive after  General  Gates,  for  whose  benefit  it  was  got  up, 
had  been  defeated  by  Lord  Cornwallis  at  Camden,  and  his 
army  scattered  to  the  winds ;  and  after  he  himself  had  de- 
servedly sunk  into  oblivion. 

A  manifestation  of  this  spirit  is  found  in  the  Memoirs  of 
General  Wilkinson,  written  after  the  close  of  the  war,  in 
which  he  gives  General  St.  Clair  the  credit  of  proposing  the 
night  march  on  Princeton,  as  the  most  advisable  expedient 
to  save  the  army  from  impending  ruin.  It  may  also  be  found 
in  a  more  recent  attempt  to  award  to  General  Mercer  the 
honor  and  glory  of  originating  the  same  proposition.  On 
the  interesting  occasion  of  removing  to  Philadelphia  the  re- 
mains of  that  lamented  officer,  from  Princeton,  the  field  of 
his  glory,  and  the  battle  ground  on  which  he  fell ;  the  elo- 
quent gentleman  who  delivered  the  eulogical  address,  exult- 
ingly  affirmed,  that  in  the  council  of  officers  convened  in  the 
American  camp,  on  the  evening  of  the  2nd  of  January,  the 
gallant  Mercer  first  advanced  the  bold  idea  of  ordering  up 
the  militia  from  Philadelphia,  and  by  a  night  march,  attack- 
ing the  enemy  at  Princeton. 

These  conflicting  claims  for  the  laurels  of  Washington, 
destroy  each  other;  but  if  either  be  well  founded,  we  can- 
not escape  the  conclusion,  that  the  Commander-in-chief 
was  the  weakest  officer  in  the  army.     He  knew  that  the 


26  INTRODUCTION. 

British  outnumbered  him,  seven  to  one — that  they  were 
well  disciplined  and  provided  with  every  thing  necessary 
for  their  comfort;  and  that  his  own  troops  were  undis- 
ciplined and  destitute  of  almost  every  thing.  He  was  at 
the  time  occupying  a  position  of  comparative  safety-,  on 
the  west  bank  of  the  Delaware.  He  knew  that  the  enemy 
were  so  situated,  that  they  could  be  united  and  brought  to 
bear  on  any  point  in  New  Jersey,  in  forty-eight  hours ;  and 
yet  it  is  more  than  insinuated,  that  he  deliberately  aban- 
doned the  protection  afforded  by  the  river — changed  his 
position  without  necessity ;  and  placed  his  little  band  of 
half  naked  troops,  the  last  hope  of  liberty,  in  a  situation 
from  which  they  could  not  retreat,  and  in  which  they  could 
not  sustain  themselves  twenty-four  hours — without  having 
any  specific  object  in  view,  or  having  formed  any  plan  for 
the  government  of  his  subsequent  movements.  In  other 
words,  that  he  plunged  into  imminent  danger,  unnecessarily 
regardless  of  consequences. 

If  such  had  been  the  case,  he  could  not  escape  the 
charge  of  imbecility  or  infidelity.  He  must  have  been  an 
impostor  or  a  traitor;  but  he  was  neither — he  saw  and  felt 
his  situation  to  be  desperate — his  companions  in  arms 
were  disheartened — his  life,  his  fortune  and  his  character 
were  at  stake,  as  well  as  the  liberty  of  the  nation.  He 
therefore  assumed  the  responsibility  of  forming  his  own 
plan,  which  was  done  before  he  crossed  the  Delaware  ami 
abandoned  the  protection  it  afforded.  He  knew  that  the 
enemy  occupied  Amboy,  New  Brunswick,  Kingston,  Prince- 
ton, Trenton,  and  Bordentown.  The  presumption,  there- 
fore, was,  that  they  must  be  weak  at  some  one  or  more  of 
those  points.  That  consideration  suggested  his  plan,  which 
was,  to  surprise  them  by  a  night  march — break  tlrough 
their  line  at  the  point  la-  might  ascertain  to  be  the  meet 
vulnerable,  and  place  his  army  where  they  might  rest  in 
safety,  through  the  residue  of  the  winter. 

In  accordance   with    that    arrangement,  he    crossed    the 


INTRODUCTION.  21 

river,  placed  his  army  on  the  Sampink,  in  sight  of  the 
enemy  at  Trenton,  and  ordered  their  tents  to  be  pitched 
and  their  fires  kindled.  He  had  previously  directed  the 
militia  to  join  him  from  below,  by  a  night  march,  and  had 
sent  out  videttes  to  ascertain  and  advise  him  of  the  situa- 
tion of  the  enemy  between  Trenton  and  New  Brunswick. 
His  arrangements  were  so  made  as  to  furnish  the  informa- 
tion required  in  time  to  enable  him  to  reach  the  point 
of  attack  during  the  first  night,  and  before  his  object  was 
discovered  by  the  enemy.  In  the  interval,  his  officers,  most 
of  whom  were  ignorant  of  his  plan,  looked  at  the  scene 
with  amazement. 

In  the  evening,  his  videttes  came  in,  and,  from  their 
reports,  it  was  apparent  that  Princeton  was  the  weakest 
point  in  the  line  of  the  enemy.  A  council  of  officers  was 
then  called,  to  whom  his  movement  was  explained,  and  the 
information  just  received,  communicated. 

The  only  question  then  proposed  to  the  council  was,  as 
to  the  place  where  the  attack  should  be  made.  On  that 
subject  there  was  but  one  opinion.  Whether  General  St. 
Clair  or  General  Mercer  first  named  Princeton,  is  not 
known,  nor  is  it  of  the  least  importance.  It  is  enough  to 
know  that  that  question  was  the  only  one  submitted ;  and 
that  the  evidence  necessary  to  decide  it,  was  before  them. 
All  other  matters  had  been  settled  by  the  Commander-in- 
chief  in  his  own  mind,  and  on  his  own  responsibility. 

The  attack  on  Princeton,  having  been  thus  decided  on. 
the  little  half  clothed  army  of  Washington,  about  midnight, 
silently  withdrew  from  the  shelter  of  their  tents,  in  a  cold 
winter  night,  and  taking  the  Quaker  road,  because  it  was 
more  circuitous,  less  traveled,  and  therefore  afforded  the 
greater  prospect  of  avoiding  discovery — arrived  in  sight  of 
Princeton,  fatigued  and  exhausted,  at  the  first  dawn  of 
day.  There  they  met  two  regiments  of  British  troops,  who 
had  just  commenced  their  march  to  Trenton.  A  severe 
conflict  ensued,  in  which  the  Americans  were  repulsed  and 


28  INTRODUCTION. 

thrown  into  disorder.  The  Commander-in-chief,  seeing  his 
danger,  and  knowing  that  every  thing  was  at  stake,  rode 
to  the  front,  addressed  his  troops,  and  conjured  them  to 
follow  him.  Order  was  restored,  and  the  Americans,  see- 
ing their  leader  in  the  foremost  front  of  the  battle,  rushed 
to  the  rescue,  and  in  turn  repulsed  the  enemy,  and  com- 
pelled them  to  retreat  in  disorder. 

On  that  occasion,  Washington  exposed  his  person  to  the 
heaviest  fire  of  the  enemy,  during  the  whole  conflict,  direct- 
ing every  movement  of  his  troops  himself;  and  it  was  evi- 
dent, that  the  inspiring  influence  of  his  example  decided  the 
fate  of  the  battle. 

It  was  afterwards  ascertained  from  the  inhabitants  of 
Trenton,  that  the  first  knowledge  of  the  movement  of  the 
American  army  from  their  encampment  on  the  Sampink, 
was  communicated  to  them  by  the  report  of  the  American 
cannon  from  Princeton — Washington  having  taken  the  pre- 
caution to  leave  his  tents  standing,  with  a  small  detach- 
ment, to  perform  the  ceremony  of  relieving  guard,  and  re- 
plenishing the  fires  during  the  night. 

The  attempt  to  transfer  the  laurels  of  Washington  to  the 
brow  of  Mercer,  is  based  on  an  allegation,  that  on  the 
evening  of  the  2nd  of  January,  in  the  board  of  officers 
then  convened,  "  General  Mercer  first  made  the  bold  pro- 
posal to  order  up  the  Philadelphia  militia,  and  make  a 
night  march  on  Princeton." 

Now  it  appears,  from  Washington's  official  letter  to  Con- 
gress, that  he  had  previously  ordered  them  up — that  they 
had  actually  joined  the  army  on  the  night  of  the  11.  and 
were  in  camp,  when,  it  is  said,  the  proposition  of  General 
Mercer  was  made. 

The  claims  which  have  been  set  up  by  the  friends  of  dif- 
ferent officers,  to  the  honor  of  originating  the  plan  of  saving 
the  army  on  that  occasion,  is  sufficient  of  itself  to  discredit 
the  story.  If  a  proposition  of  that  character  had  been 
made,  the   mover  would  have  been  known — his   identity 


INTRODUCTION.  29 

could  not  have  been  mistaken;  and  he  would  have  claimed 
his  reward.  The  allegation  presupposes  that  the  entire 
plan  of  the  Commander-in-chief,  was  concerted  by  his 
officers,  after  he  had  crossed  the  river,  and  placed  himself 
in  front  of  a  vastly  superior  enemy,  knowing  that  a  retreat 
was  impossible. 

The  fact  was  not  so — his  plan  was  his  own- — it  was  con- 
ceived in  his  own  mind,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Delaware 
— was  communicated  to  his  officers  on  the  bank  of  the 
Sampink,  and  manifestly  saved  his  army,  and  secured  the 
independence  of  his  country. 


BURNET'S    NOTES 


ON  THE 


NORTH-WESTERN     TERRITORY. 


CHAPTER    I. 


Population  of  the  Territory  in  1795-6. —  Description  of  Cincinnati  at  that 
time. — Progress  of  settlement  from  1788  to  1800. — Public  buildings. — So- 
cial influence  of  the  garrison. — Ordinance  of  1787. — Its  provisions. — Ap- 
pointment of  officers  under  it. — Treaty  of  Fort  Harmar. — Re-organization 
of  the  Territorial  Government. — Legislation  of  the  Governor  and  Judges. — 
The  Maxwell  Code. 

In  the  winter  of  1795-6,  Governor  St.  Clair  and  Judge 
Turner,  who  had  recently  visited  the  white  settlements  in 
the  Territory,  estimated  their  population  at  fifteen  thousand 
souls,  including  men,  women  and  children'.  At  that  time, 
Cincinnati  was  a  small  village  of  log  cabins,  including 
about  fifteen  rough,  unfinished,  frame  houses,  with  stone 
chimneys.  Not  a  brick  had  then  been  seen  in  the  place, 
where  now  so  many  elegant  edifices  present  themselves  to 
the  eye;  and  where  a  population  is  found,  estimated  at 
eighty  thousand  souls. 

The  city  stands  on  a  lower  and  an  upper  plane.  The 
former  rises  about  sixty  feet  above  low  water  mark,  and 
extends  back  from  the  river,  about  sixty-five  or  seventy- 
rods.  The  latter  is  about  forty  feet  higher  than  the  former, 
and  extends  in  the  same  direction,  an  average  distance  of 
about  a  mile  and  a  half.  When  the  town  was  laid  out,  and 
for  several  years  after,  the  surface  of  the  ground,  at  the 
base  of  the  upper  level,  was  lower  than  on  the  margin  of 


32  [BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

the  river;  in  consequence  of  which,  there  was  a  narrow 
swamp  or  morass  formed,  which  extended  the  entire  length 
of  the  town,  and  subjected  the  inhabitants,  during  the 
summer  and  fall,  to  agues  and  intermittent  fevers. 

In  September,  179G,  the  writer  of  this  sketch,  had  one  of 
those  attacks,  at  the  chief  hotel  of  the  village,  owned  and 
kept  by  Griffin  Yeatman,  an  early  emigrant  from  Virginia. 
His  bed  stood  in  a  large  room,  neither  lathed  nor  plastered, 
originally  intended,  and  occasionally  used,  for  a  ball  room; 
but  ordinarily  occupied  as  the  common  dormitory  of  the 
establishment.  At  the  time  referred  to,  there  were  fifteen 
or  sixteen  others  lying  sick  in  the  same  room,  which  gave 
it  very  much  the  appearance  of  a  hospital.  Unpleasant  as 
the  condition  of  those  invalids  was,  not  a  murmur,  or  com- 
plaint was  heard.  Most  of  them  had  been  accustomed  to 
very  different  accommodations  in  sickness,  but  they  knew 
they  were  as  well  provided  for  and  attended  to,  as  circum- 
stances would  permit,  and  were  therefore  contented. 

The  emigrants  who  were  in  the  Territory  in  1796,  were 
few  in  number,  and  were  located  in  different  and  remote 
settlements,  between  which  there  was  but  little  intercourse. 
The  country  they  inhabited  was  wild  and  uncultivated,  and 
was  separated  from  the  Atlantic  inhabitants,  by  a  broad 
belt  of  rugged  mountains,  equally  wild  and  uncultivated, 
containing  scarcely  the  semblance  of  a  road,  bridge,  ferry, 
or  other  improvement,  to  facilitate  intercourse  with  the 
Atlantic  states.  The  adjoining  regions,  on  every  side,  Mere 
also  uncultivated  and  without  commerce,  or  the  me  ana  of 
creating  it.  At  that  time,  the  primitive  mode  of  transpor- 
tation across  the  mountains,  by  pack-horses,  bad  been  but 
recently  exchanged,  for  the  greater  convenience  of  the 
heavy  Pennsylvania  road-wagon,  which  wended  il>  way 
slowly  through  the  mountains.  The  country  contained 
neither  shelter  nor  protection  for  civilized  man:  nor  had  it 
anything  in  the  form  of  constitution  or  law,  till  alter  the 
promulgation  of  the  Ordinance  of  1787. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  33 

A  correct  idea  of  the  progress  made  in  settling  the  Terri- 
tory, may  be  formed  from  these  facts ;  that  the  first  emi- 
grants planted  themselves  at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum, 
in  the  spring  of  1788 — that,  at  the  close  of  1795,  after  the 
lapse  of  seven  years,  the  white  population,  of  all  ages,  and 
both  sexes,  was  ascertained  to  be  fifteen  thousand,  accord- 
ing to  the  best  information  that  could  be  obtained  by  the 
Governor  and  Judges,  who  had  visited  almost  every  settle- 
ment in  the  Territory;  and  that  in  1800,  by  a  census  taken 
under  the  authority  of  Congress,  the  number  was  ascertain- 
ed to  be  45,365 ;  being  the  entire  population  acquired  by  all 
the  settlements  in  the  Territory  during  the  first  thirteen 
years,  after  their  commencement. 

Prior  to  the  Treaty  of  Greenville,  which  established  a  per- 
manent peace  between  the  United  States  and  the  Indians, 
but  few  improvements  had  been  made,  of  any  description, 
and  scarcely  one  of  a  permanent  character.  In  Cincinnati, 
Fort  Washington  was  the  most  remarkable  object.  That 
rude,  but  highly  interesting  structure,  stood  between  Third 
and  Fourth  streets  produced,  east  of  Eastern  Row,  now 
Broadway,  which  was  then  a  two-pole  alley,  and  was  the 
eastern  boundary  of  the  town,  as  originally  laid  out.  It 
was  composed  of  a  number  of  strongly  built,  hewed-log 
cabins,  a  story  and  a  half  high,  calculated  for  soldier's 
barracks.  Some  of  them,  more  conveniently  arranged,  and 
better  finished,  were  intended  for  officers'  quarters.  They 
were  so  placed  as  to  form  a  hollow  square  of  about  an  acre 
of  ground,  with  a  strong  block-house  at  each  angle.  It  was 
built  of  large  logs,  cut  from  the  ground  on  which  it  stood, 
which  was  a  tract  of  fifteen  acres,  reserved  by  Congress  in 
the  law  of  1792,  for  the  accommodation  of  the  garrison. 

The  artificers'  yard  was  an  appendage  to  the  Fort,  and 
stood  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  immediately  in  front.  It 
contained  about  two  acres  of  ground,  enclosed  by  small 
contiguous  buildings,  occupied  as  work-shops,  and  quarters 
for  laborers.  Within  the  enclosure,  there  was  a  large  two- 
3 


34  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

story  frame  house,  familiarly  called  the  "  yellow  house," 
built  for  the  accommodation  of  the  Quartermaster  General, 
which  was  the  most  commodious  and  best  finished  edifice 
in  Cincinnati. 

On  the  north  side  of  Fourth  street,  immediately  behind 
the  Fort,  Colonel  Sargent,  Secretary  of  the  Territory,  had 
a  convenient  frame  house,  and  a  spacious  garden,  cultivated 
with  care  and  taste.  On  the  east  side  of  the  Fort,  Dr.  Alli- 
son, the  Surgeon  General  of  the  Army,  had  a  plain  frame 
dwelling,  in  the  centre  of  a  large  lot,  cultivated  as  a  gar- 
den and  fruitery,  which  was  called  Peach  Grove. 

The  Presbyterian  Church,  an  interesting  edifice,  stood  on 
Main  street,  in  front  of  the  spacious  brick  building  now 
occupied  by  the  First  Presbyterian  Congregation.  It  was  a 
substantial  frame  building,  about  40  feet  by  30,  enclosed 
with  clapboards,  but  neither  lathed,  plastered  nor  ceiled. 
The  floor  was  of  boat  plank,  laid  loosely  on  the  sleepers  ; 
the  seats  were  of  the  same  material,  supported  by  blocks  of 
wood.  There  was  a  breast-work  of  unplaned  cherry 
boards,  called  the  Pulpit,  behind  which  the  clergyman  stood 
on  a  piece  of  boat  plank,  resting  on  wooden  blocks.  In 
that  humble  edifice,  the  pioneers  and  their  families  assem- 
bled, statedly,  for  public  worship ;  and,  during  the  continu- 
ance of  the  war,  they  always  attended  with  loaded  rifles 
by  their  sides.  That  building  was  afterwards  neatly  fin- 
ished, and  some  years  subsequently,  was  sold  and  removed 
to  Vine  street,  where  it  now  remains,  the  property  of  Judge 
Burke. 

On  the  north  side  of  Fourth  street,  opposite  where  St. 
Paul's  Church  now  stands,  there  stood  a  frame  school  house, 
enclosed,  but  unfinished,  in  which  the  children  of  the  vil- 
lage were  instructed.  On  the  north  side  of  the  public 
square,  there  was  a  strong  log  building,  erected  and  occu- 
pied as  a  jail.  A  room  in  the  tavern  of  George  Avery. 
near  the  frog-pond,  at  the  corner  of  Main  and  Fifth  streets, 
had  been  rented  for  the  accommodation  of  the  Courts;  and 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  35 

as  the  penitentiary  system  had  not  been  adopted,  and  Cin- 
cinnati was  a  seat  of  justice,  it  was  ornamented  with  a  pil- 
lory, stocks  and  whipping-post,  and  occasionally  with  a 
gallows.  These  were  all  the  structures  of  a  public  char- 
acter then  in  the  place.  Add  to  these,  the  cabins  and  other 
temporary  buildings  for  the  shelter  of  the  inhabitants,  and 
it  will  complete  the  schedule  of  the  improvements  of  Cin- 
cinnati, at  the  time  of  the  treaty  of  Greenville.  The  only 
vestige  of  them,  now  remaining,  is  the  Church  of  the  Pi- 
oneers. With  that  exception,  and  probably  two  or  three 
frame  buildings  which  have  been  repaired,  improved  and 
preserved,  every  edifice  in  the  city  has  been  erected  since 
the  ratification  of  that  treaty.  The  stations  of  defence 
scattered  through  the  Miami  Valley,  were  all  temporary, 
and  have,  long  since,  gone  to  decay,  or  been  demolished. 

The  improvements  at  Marietta,  which  was  the  chief  town 
of  the  Ohio  Company's  purchase,  though  constructed  more 
tastefully  than  those  at  Cincinnati,  were  all  of  a  temporary 
character, — they  have  long  since  disappeared,  and  form  no 
part  of  the  objects  seen  at  the  present  day.  And  indeed, 
with  the  exception  of  Detroit,  and  the  old  French  settle- 
ments on  the  Wabash  and  Mississippi,  in  which  some  an- 
cient structure  may  remain,  the  remark  applies  to  every 
part  of  the  Territory.  All  the  productions  of  labor  and  art, 
north-west  of  the  Ohio,  have  been  produced  since  the  peace 
of  1795. 

It  may  assist  the  reader  in  forming  something  like  a  cor- 
rect idea,  of  the  appearance  of  Cincinnati,  and  of  what  it  ac- 
tually was  at  that  time,  to  know,  that,  at  the  intersection  of 
Main  and  Fifth  streets,  now  the  centre  of  business  and  taste- 
ful improvement,  there  was  a  pond  of  water,  full  of  alder 
bushes,  from  which  the  frogs  serenaded  the  neighborhood 
during  the  summer  and  fall,  and  which  rendered  it  neces- 
sary to  construct  a  causeway  of  logs,  to  pass  it.  That 
morass  remained  in  its  natural  state,  with  its  alders  and  its 
frogs,  several  years  after  Mr.  B.  became  a  resident  of  the 


36  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

place,  the  population  of  which,  including  the  garrison  and 
followers  of  the  army,  was  about  six  hundred.  The  Fort 
was  then  commanded  by  William  H.  Harrison,  a  captain 
in  the  army,  but  afterwards  President  of  the  United  States. 
In  1797,  General  Wilkinson,  the  commander-in-chief  of 
the  army,  made  it  his  head-quarters  for  a  few  months,  but 
did  not,  apparently,  interfere  with  the  command  of  Capt. 
Harrison,  which  continued  till  his  resignation  in  1798. 

During  the  period  now  spoken  of,  the  settlements  of  the 
Territory,  including  Cincinnati,  contained  but  few  individ- 
uals, and  still  fewer  families,  who  had  been  accustomed  to 
mingle  in  the  circles  of  polished  society.  That  fact  put  it 
in  the  power  of  the  military  to  give  character  to  the  man- 
ners and  customs  of  the  people.  Such  a  school,  it  must  be 
admitted,  was  by  no  means  calculated  to  make  the  most 
favorable  impression  on  the  morals  and  sobriety  of  any 
community,  as  was  abundantly  proved  by  the  result. 

Idleness,  drinking,  and  gambling,  prevailed  in  the  army,  to 
a  greater  extent,  than  it  has  done  at  any  subsequent  period. 
This  may  be  attributed  to  the  fact,  that  they  had  been  seve- 
ral years  in  the  wilderness,  cut  off  from  all  society  but  their 
own,  with  but  few  comforts  or  conveniences  at  hand,  and  no 
amusements  but  such  as  their  own  ingenuity  could  invent. 
Libraries  were  not  to  be  found, — men  of  literary  minds,  or 
polished  manners,  were  rarely  met  with ;  and  they  had  long 
been  deprived  of  the  advantage  of  modest,  accomplished 
female  society,  which  always  produces  a  salutary  influence 
on  the  feelings  and  moral  habits  of  men.  Thus  situated, 
the  officers  were  urged,  by  an  irresistible  impulse,  to  tax 
their  wits  for  expedients  to  fill  up  the  chasms  of  leisure 
which  were  left  on  their  hands,  after  a  lull  discharge  of 
their  military  duties ;  and,  as  is  too  frequently  the  cat  e,  in 
such  circumstances,  the  bottle,  the  dice-box,  and  the  card- 
table,  were  among  the  expedients  resorted  to,  because  they 
were  the  nearest  at  hand,  and  the  most  easily  procured. 

It  is  a  difitreaeing  fact,  that  a  very  large  proportion  of  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  37 

officers  under  General  Wayne,  and  subsequently  und< 
General  Wilkinson,  were  hard  drinkers.  Harrison,  Clark, 
Shomberg,  Ford,  Strong,  and  a  few  others,  were  the  only 
exceptions.  Such  were  the  habits  of  the  army  when  they 
began  to  associate  with  the  inhabitants  of  Cincinnati,  and 
of  the  western  settlements  generally,  and  to  give  tone  to 
public  sentiment. 

As  a  natural  consequence,  the  citizens  indulged  in  the 
same  practices,  and  formed  the  same  habits.  As  a  proof 
of  this  it  may  be  stated,  that  when  Mr.  Burnet  came  to  the 
bar,  there  were  nine  resident  lawyers  engaged  in  the  prac- 
tice, of  wThom  he  is,  and  has  been  for  many  years,  the  only 
survivor.  They  all  became  confirmed  sots,  and  descended 
to  premature  graves,  excepting  his  brother,  who  was  a 
young  man  of  high  promise,  but  whose  life  was  terminated 
by  a  rapid  consumption,  in  the  summer  of  1801.  He  ex- 
pired under  the  shade  of  a  tree  by  the  side  of  the  road  on 
the  banks  of  Paint  creek,  a  few  miles  from  Chillicothe. 

In  July  1787,  Congress,  acting  under  the  articles  of  con- 
federation, passed  the  much  admired  Ordinance  for  the 
government  of  the  Territory  of  the  United  States,  north-west 
of  the  river  Ohio,  which  was  the  first  step  towards  the  es- 
tablishment of  civil  government  within  it.  That  ordinance 
affirmed  and  perpetuated  the  great  principles  of  liberty, 
civil  and  religious,  which  had  been  set  forth  in  the  declara- 
tion of  independence  —  re-affirmed  in  the  treaty  of  1783, 
and  perpetuated  by  the  federal  constitution  adopted  in  1788. 

There  has  been  some  diversity  of  opinion,  as  to  the  indi- 
vidual to  whom  the  honor  of  the  paternity  of  that  document 
rightfully  belongs.  Some  have  claimed  it  for  Mr.  Jefferson, 
though  he  did  not  claim  it  himself.  He  supported  and  ad- 
vocated the  great  principles  of  liberty  which  it  avowed, 
and  guaranteed  to  the  people  of  the  territory.  The  honor 
of  drafting  that  instrument,  on  which  the  constitutions  of 
ail  the  north-western  states  are  founded,  belongs,  of  right, 
to  Nathan  Dane,  a  revolutionary  patriot  of  Massachusetts. 


38  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

He  was  its  author — he  reported  it  to  Congress  and  perse- 
vered in  explaining,  and  pressing  it  on  their  attention,  till 
they  became  satisfied  of  its  merits,  and  adopted  it  by  a 
unanimous  vote,  Mr.  Jefferson  being  at  the  time  in  France. 
That  document  was  the  constitution  of  the  territory. 

It  vested  the  executive  power  in  a  Governor — the  judicial 
power  in  a  General  Court,  composed  of  three  Judges,  and 
the  legislative  power  in  the  Governor  and  Judges,  acting  as 
a  legislative  council.  It  also  provided  for  the  appointment 
of  a  Secretary  of  the  Territory,  who  was  subsequently  au- 
thorized, by  an  act  of  Congress,  to  execute  all  the  powers  and 
duties  of  the  Governor,  in  case  of  his  death,  resignation,  re- 
moval, or  necessary  absence  from  the  territory.  It  also  pro- 
vided for  the  establishment  of  tribunals,  inferior  to  the  gen- 
eral court,  and  for  the  appointment  of  subordinate  officers. 

The  legislative  power  was  limited  to  the  adoption  of  such 
laws  of  the  original  states,  as  they  might  think  suited  to  the 
condition  and  wants  of  the  people  ;  which  were  to  be  sub- 
mitted to,  and  approved  by  Congress.  It  also  entitled  the 
territory,  as  soon  as  it  should  be  found  to  contain  five  thou- 
sand free  male  inhabitants,  of  full  age,  to  a  General  Assem- 
bly, to  consist  of  a  legislative  council  and  house  of  repre- 
sentatives, and  also  to  a  delegate  in  Congress. 

For  the  purpose  of  carrying  the  Ordinance  into  effect  and 
organizing  a  Territorial  Government,  Congress,  on  the  5th 
of  October,  1787,  elected  Arthur  St.  Clair,  Governor,  and 
Winthrop  Sargent,  Secretary;  and  on  the  16th  of  the  same 
month  they  appointed  Samuel  Holden  Parsons,  John  Arm- 
strong, of  Newburg,  New  York,  and  .lames  Mitchell  Yar- 
num,  Judges  of  the  said  Territory.  On  the  16th  of  January, 
John  Armstrong  declined  the  appointment,  and  John  C. 
Symmes  was  chosen  to  fill  the  vacancy. 

On  the  same  day  on  which  General  St.  Clair  was  appoin- 
ted Governor  of  the  Territory,  Congress  passed  a  resolution 
instructing  him  "to  hold  a  general  treaty  with  the  tribes  of 
Indians  within  the  United  States,  inhabiting  the  country 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  39 

north-west  of  the  river  Ohio,  and  about  the  lakes,  at  such 
time  and  place  as  he  should  appoint ;  for  the  purpose  of 
knowing  the  causes  of  uneasiness  among  them — hearing 
their  complaints — regulating  trade,  and  amicably  settling  all 
affairs  concerning  lands  and  boundaries  between  them  and 
the  United  States,  agreeably  to  such  instructions  as  should 
be  given  him,  for  that  purpose."  In  pursuance  of  that  order 
he  assembled  the  Indians  at  Marietta,  in  January  following, 
and  negotiated  "  the  Treaty  of  Fort  Harmar,"  which,  it  was 
supposed,  would  ensure  safety  to  the  settlements  then  just 
beginning  to  be  formed. 

In  the  succeeding  summer,  the  Governor,  Judge  Varnum, 
and  Judge  Parsons,  met  at  Marietta,  and  commenced  the 
duty  of  legislating  for  the  territory.  They  continued  in  ses- 
sion till  December,  during  which  period  they  enacted  a  num- 
ber of  laws  on  different  subjects,  which  were  submitted  to 
Congress,  as  the  Ordinance  required ;  but  were  not  approved, 
on  the  ground,  that  the  Governor  and  Judges,  in  their  legisla- 
tive capacity,  were  empowered  only  to  adopt  existing  laws 
from  the  codes  of  the  original  states,  and  not  to  enact  laws 
of  their  own  formation.  This  was  the  only  legislative  bu- 
siness attempted  under  the  commissions  granted  by  the  Con- 
gress of  the  old  Confederation. 

On  the  2d  of  July,  1788,  Congress  were  officially  informed 
that  the  state  of  New  Hampshire  had  adopted  the  new  Fed- 
eral Constitution ;  and  as  it  had  then  been  adopted  by  nine 
of  the  states,  which  was  the  number  required  to  bring  it  into 
operation,  measures  were  immediately  taken  for  that  pur- 
pose, in  pursuance  of  the  resolutions  of  the  Federal  Con- 
vention. The  first  Congress  under  the  new  Constitution  was 
then  elected,  and  in  May,  1789,  they  assembled  at  Federal 
Hall,  on  Wall  street,  in  the  city  of  New  York.  That  vene- 
rable body,  composed  of  men  of  the  first  order  of  talent  and 
patriotism,  elected  their  officers, — installed  the  Father  of  his 
Country  first  President  of  the  United  States,  and  then  pro- 


40  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ceeded  to  the  important  business  which  the  Constitution  had 
confided  to  them. 

One  of  the  first  official  steps  of  the  President,  was  to  sub- 
mit to  the  Senate  the  Treaty  of  Fort  Harmar,  negotiated 
with  the  Indians  during  the  preceding  winter,  which  was 
approved  and  ratified.  As  it  was  understood  that  appoint- 
ments under  the  Articles  of  Confederation,  expired  with  the 
government  by  which  they  were  made,  the  President  nomi- 
nated to  the  Senate,  candidates  for  all  the  offices  created  in 
the  Ordinance  of  1787,  which  were  taken  up  in  Senate  on 
the  20th  of  August,  1789,  when  Arthur  St.  Clair  was  re- 
appointed Governor,  and  Winthrop  Sargent,  Secretary  of 
the  Territory. 

On  the  same  day,  Samuel  Holden  Parsons,  John  Cleves 
Symmes,  and  William  Barton,  were  appointed  Judges  of  the 
general  court.  Mr.  Barton  having  declined  the  appointment, 
George  Turner  was  chosen  to  fill  the  vacancy.  Shortly  after 
his  appointment  Judge  Parsons  died,  and  Rufus  Putnam  was 
appointed  to  fill  his  vacancy  in  March,  1790.  He  continued 
in  office  till  December  1796,  when  he  resigned  his  commis- 
sion, to  enable  him  to  accept  the  office  of  Surveyor  General, 
for  which  he  had  been  nominated ;  and  Joseph  Gillman,  of 
Point  Harmar,  was  chosen  to  fill  the  vacancy.  Judge  Tur- 
ner left  the  Territory  in  the  spring  of  1796,  and  before  his 
return,  resigned  his  seat  on  the  bench,  which  was  filled  by 
the  appointment  of  Return  Jonathan  Meigs,  in  February, 
1798.  The  judges  then  in  commission,  continued  to  hold 
their  seats  till  the  territorial  government  was  superseded  by 
the  adoption  of  a  state  constitution.  These  appointments 
completed  the  organization  of  the  first  grade  of  government, 
as  far  as  depended  on  the  action  of  congress. 

In  July,  1790,  Winthrop  Sargent,  Sccretaiy,  and  acting 
Governor  of  the  Territory ;  John  C.  Symmes,  and  George 
Turner,  Judges,  met  at  Vincennes,  in  their  Legislative  ca- 
pacity, and  passed  an  act  to  prevent  the  sale  of  spirituous 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  41 

liquors,  and  an  act  to  suppress  gaming.  Those  enactments 
were  subject  to  the  same  objection  as  is  stated  above — they 
were  enacted,  not  adopted.  Several  legislative  sessions  were 
held  after  this,  at  which  a  number  of  laws  were  drafted  and 
enacted,  regardless  of  the  limitation  imposed  by  the  Ordi- 
nance. 

Although  these  laws  were  not  approved  by  Congress,  they 
continued  in  force  for  longer  or  shorter  periods;  and  some 
of  them  till  the  second  grade  of  government  was  established, 
notwithstanding  strong  doubts  of  their  constitutionality  were 
expressed  by  the  bar.  At  length  the  Governor  and  Judges, 
discovering  that  their  enactments  had  not  been  approved, 
began  to  doubt  their  correctness ;  and  at  a  legislative  ses- 
sion, held  at  Cincinnati,  in  the  summer  of  1795,  they  prepa- 
red a  code  of  laws  adopted  from  the  statutes  of  the  original 
states,  which  superseded  the  chief  part  of  those  they  had 
previously  enacted. 

This  body  of  laws  was  printed  at  Cincinnati,  by  William 
Maxwell,  in  1795,  from  which  circumstance  it  was  called 
the  Maxwell  code.  It  was  the  first  job  of  printing  ever 
executed  in  the  North-western  Territory,  and  the  book  should 
be  preserved,  as  a  specimen  of  the  condition  of  the  art,  in 
the  western  country,  at  that  period.  All  the  laws  previously 
passed  had  been  printed  at  Philadelphia,  from  necessity,  be- 
cause there  was  not  at  the  time  a  printing  office  in  the  ter- 
ritory. The  Maxwell  code  was  supposed  to  be  so  full  and 
complete,  that  but  one  short  legislative  session  was  held 
thereafter,  in  1798,  at  which  a  few  additional  laws  were 
adopted;  after  which  the  statutes  of  the  territory  underwen 
no  alteration,  till  the  first  session  of  the  General  Assembly, 
held  under  the  second  grade  of  government,  in  1799. 


CHAPTER   II. 

Western  Pioneers  chiefly  Revolutionary  characters. — Colony  from  New  Eng- 
land in  1787. — Formed  by  Cutler,  Sargent  &  Co. — Arrive  at  the  Yoghi- 
gany  in  the  fall  of  1787.  Encamped  for  the  winter. — Reach  Marietta  in 
April  1788 — Block-house  erected. — A  school  and  a  church  established. — 
Gen.  R.  Putnam  leader  of  the  party. — His  character. — His  appointment  to 
office. — Poverty  of  Revolutionary  officers  drove  them  to  emigrate. — Their 
sufferings. — Settlement  under  Major  Stites,  at  Columbia. — Under  Denman 
&  Co.  at  Cincinnati. — Under  Judge  Symmes,  at  North  Bend. — Losanteville, 
intended  name  of  a  town  never  laid  out. — Troops  sent  by  Gen.  Harmar, 
to  the  Miami  settlements. — Where  stationed. — Their  behavior. — Attacked 
by  the  Indians  at  North  Bend. — Major  Mills  severely  wounded. — Villages 
laid  out. — Donation  lots. — Interview  of  Symmes  with  the  Indians. — Settle- 
ment at  Columbia  plundered. — Captain  Flinn  taken  prisoner. — Made  his 
escape. — Comparative  strength  of  the  settlements  at  the  Miamies. — Fort 
Washington  built  by  Major  Doughty. — Judicial  Courts  first  established. — 
Anterior  arrangements  for  administering  Justice. — Indian  hostilities. — Com- 
plaints of  Judge  Symmes  against  Gen.  Harmar  for  withholding  protec- 
tion.— Temerity  of  the  Pioneers  and  the  Troops. 

The  early  adventurers  to  the  North-western  Territory, 
were  generally  men  who  had  spent  the  prime  of  their  lives 
in  the  war  of  Independence.  Many  of  them  had  exhausted 
their  fortunes  in  maintaining  the  desperate  struggle;  and 
retired  to  the  wilderness  to  conceal  their  poverty,  and  a\  aid 
companions  mortifying  to  their  pride,  while  struggling  to 
maintain  their  families,  and  improve  their  condition.  Some 
of  them  were  young  men,  descended  from  revolutionary 
patriots,  who  had  fallen  in  the  contest,  or  become  too  feeble 
to  endure  the  fatigue  of  settling  a  wilderness.  Other- 
were  adventurous  spirits,  to  whom  any  change  might  be 
for  the  better;  and  who,  anticipating  a  successful   result, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY. 


43 


united  in  the  enterprise.  Such  a  colony  as  this  left  New 
England  in  1787,  for  the  purpose  of  occupying  the  grant 
made  to  Sargent,  Cutler  &  Company,  on  the  Muskingum 
river ;  most  of  whom  had  served  in  the  war  of  the  Revo- 
lution, either  as  officers  or  soldiers.  In  their  journey  west 
they  struck  the  Monongahela  river,  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Yoghigany,  so  late  in  the  season,  that  it  was  deemed  impru- 
dent to  descend  the  Ohio ;  they  therefore  encamped  for  the 
winter,  and  built  a  substantial  row-galley,  covered  with 
a  deck,  which  was  an  effectual  protection  against  the  rifles 
of  the  Indians,  while  on  their  passage  down  the  river. 
After  their  arrival  at  the  place  of  their  destination,  it  was 
found  to  be  of  great  use  for  the  safe  transportation  of  per- 
sons and  property  from  place  to  place.  The  party  landed 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum,  in  April,  1788,  with  a 
good  supply  of  provisions,  and  began  their  improvements. 

Their  first  object  was  to  erect  a  block-house  and  stockade, 
for  defence ;  after  which,  they  surveyed  the  town  of  Mari- 
etta, on  the  Ohio  river,  east  of  the  Muskingum,  and  at  the 
same  time,  village  lots  were  laid  out,  west  of  that  river, 
contiguous  to  Fort  Harmar,  then  recently  built,  and  garri- 
soned by  United  States'  troops.  Although  many  of  those 
emigrants  were  men  of  distinction  and  energy,  and  subse- 
quently filled  the  most  important  stations  in  the  country, 
yet  General  Putnam,  by  common  consent,  seemed  to  be 
regarded  as  their  principal  chief  and  leader.  He  had 
been  one  of  the  veterans  of  the  Revolution,  and  was  much 
respected,  as  may  be  inferred  from  the  many  confidential 
appointments  he  received  from  government ;  chiefly  on  the 
nomination  of  President  Washington.  After  his  elevation 
to  the  bench,  he  was  appointed  a  Brigadier  General,  in 
1792.  In  the  year  following,  he  was  commissioned  to 
negotiate  a  treaty  with  the  Indians,  at  Vincennes;  in  which 
he  succeeded,  and  accomplished  the  object  which  the  Gov- 
ernment had  in  view,  to  their  entire  satisfaction. 

In  1796  he  was  appointed  Surveyor  General,  there  being 


44  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

then  but  one  office  of  that  grade,  in  the  United  States.  His 
residence  was  on  the  east  side  of  the  Muskingum,  about 
half  a  mile  from  the  Ohio,  where  he  constructed  a  large 
block-house  of  logs,  enclosed  by  heavy  pickets.  In  that 
rough,  but  comfortable  residence  he  received  his  friends, 
and  whoever  saw  proper  to  call  on  him,  and  entertained 
them  with  the  simplicity  and  hospitality  of  an  ancient 
patriarch. 

During  the  sitting  of  the  general  court  in  October,  1796, 
shortly  before  he  resigned  his  seat  on  the  bench,  a  party 
of  thirty  or  forty,  including  the  court  and  bar,  dined  at  his 
table  in  his  humble  but  spacious  cabin — while  the  block- 
house and  stockade  were  yet  standing.  He  entertained  the 
party  with  a  simple  but  dignified  deportment,  altogether 
natural.  It  was  without  ostentation,  but  with  much  good 
sense,  mingled  with  wit  and  pleasantry.  He  recited  anec- 
dotes of  the  Revolution,  and  of  the  Indian  war,  which  had 
then  just  terminated ;  in  the  hazards  of  both  of  which,  he 
had  participated.  Some  of  his  recitals  were  of  a  serious 
and  distressing  character — others  were  repeated  with  such 
comments  as  rendered  them  interesting  and  amusing. 

The   individuals    composing   the   Marietta   colony   were 
principally  descendants  of  the  Puritan  fathers,  who  com- 
menced the  settlement  of  Massachusetts  in  the  winter  of 
1620.     They  retained  a  portion  of  the  good  old   customs 
and  steady  habits  of  their  pilgrim  ancestors ;   and  also  of 
their  veneration  for  the  institutions   of  religion,  literature 
and  morality.     Hence  it  was,  that,  as  soon   as   they  had 
provided  shelter   for   themselves    and   their    families,  they 
directed  their  attention  to  the  organization  of  a  church.     A 
convenient  place  for  public  worship  was  provided,  and  a 
pastor  procured.     A  school  was  also  organized  at  the  same 
time.     These  were  the  first  institutions  of  the  kind  got  up 
within  the  North-western  Territory;  and  the  inhabitants  of 
the  colony,  without  distinction,  contributed,  with  great  good 
will,  to  sustain  them. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  45 

Nothing  can  better  establish  the  fact,  that  the  officers  of 
the  revolution  were  illy  compensated  for  their  services  and 
sufferings,  in  the  long  and  distressing  struggle  for  national 
liberty,  than  the  destitute,  dependent  condition  in  which 
they  found  themselves,  at  the  close  of  the  war.  After  hav- 
ing spent  the  most  valuable  period  of  their  lives  in  the 
army  —  enduring  every  species  of  exposure,  fatigue,  and 
suffering — they  were  dismissed  and  sent  to  their  homes, 
if  they  were  so  fortunate  as  to  have  any,  with  nothing  but 
empty  promises,  which  have  never  been  realized  —  and 
most  of  them  with  broken  or  impaired  constitutions.  War 
had  been  their  trade,  and  most  of  them  were  destitute  of 
any  other  profession. 

The  certificates  they  received,  as  evidence  of  the  sums 
due  them  from  the  country,  were  almost  valueless.  They 
were  bought  and  sold  in  the  market,  at  two  shillings  and 
sixpence  for  twenty  shillings :  and  so  late  as  1788,  they 
were  worth  only  five  shillings  in  the  pound ;  at  which  ruin- 
ous rates  those  meritorious  men  were  driven  by  necessity 
to  sell  them,  or  to  starve.  These  circumstances  are  here 
introduced,  chiefly  to  account  for  the  fact,  that  a  large 
proportion  of  the  early  adventurers  to  the  western  wilder- 
ness, had  been  officers  or  soldiers  in  the  revolutionary  war. 
They  were  honorable,  high-minded  men,  whose  feelings 
rebelled  at  the  thought  of  living  in  poverty,  among  people 
of  comparative  wealth,  for  the  protection  of  which,  their 
own  poverty  had  been  incurred. 

Under  the  influence  of  that  noble  feeling,  hundreds  of 
those  brave  men  left  their  friends  and  sought  retirement  on 
the  frontiers,  where  no  invidious  comparisons  could  be 
drawn  between  wealth  and  poverty,  and  where  they  be- 
came again  involved  in  the  hazardous  conflicts  of  another 
war. 

Though  the  writer  cannot  refer  to  any  register  of  the 
names  of  the  persons  who  composed  the  colony  of  the  Ohio 
Company,  yet  the  fact  that  a  large  proportion  of  them  had 


46  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

served  in  the  war  of  independence  will  be  corroborated  by 
stating  the  names  of  Putnam,  Sargent,  Whipple,  Tupper, 
Sproat,  Oliver,  Greene,  Cutler,  Parsons,  Nye,  and  Meigs  — 
being  a  portion  of  those  of  them  whom  he  knew  and  still 
recollects.  It  is  also  a  fact,  leading  to  the  same  conclusion, 
that  three-fourths  of  the  persons  who  formed  the  Miami 
Company,  and  advanced  the  first  instalment  of  the  pur- 
chase money,  had  served  in  the  revolutionary  war. 

Soon  after  the  settlement  was  commenced  at  Marietta, 
three  parties  were  formed  to  occupy  and  improve  separate 
portions  of  Judge  Symmes'  purchase,  between  the  Miami 
rivers.  The  first,  led  by  Major  Benjamin  Stites,  consisted 
of  eighteen  or  twenty,  who  landed  in  November,  1788,  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Little  Miami  river,  within  the  limits  of  a 
tract  often  thousand  acres,  purchased  by  Major  Stites,  from 
Judge  Symmes.  They  constructed  a  log  fort,  and  laid  out 
the  town  of  Columbia,  which  soon  became  a  promising  vil- 
lage. Among  them  were  Colonel  Spencer,  Major  Gano, 
Judge  Goforth,  Francis  Dunlavy,  Major  Kibbey,  Reverend 
John  Smith,  Judge  Foster,  Colonel  Brown,  Mr.  Hubbell, 
Captain  Flinn,  Jacob  White,  and  John  Riley. 

They  were  all  men  of  energy  and  enterprise,  and  were 
more  numerous  than  either  of  the  parties  who  commenced 
their  settlements  below  them  on  the  Ohio.  Their  village 
was  also  more  flourishing,  and  for  two  or  three  years  con- 
tained a  larger  number  of  inhabitants  than  any  other  in  the 
Miami  purchase.  This  superiority,  however,  did  not  con- 
tinue, as  will  appear  from  the  sequel. 

The  second  party  destined  for  the  Miami,  was  formed  at 
Limestone,  under  Matthias  Dennian  and  Robert  Patterson, 
amounting  to  twelve  or  fifteen  in  number.  After  much 
dilficulty  and  danger,  caused  by  floating  ice  in  the  river, 
they  landed  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Ohio,  opposite  the 
mouth  of  Licking,  on  the  24th  of  December,  1788.  Their 
purpose  was  to  establish  a  station,  and  lay  out  a  town 
according  to  a  plan  agreed  on,  before  they  left  Limestone. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  47 

The  name  adopted  for  the  proposed  town  was  Losanteville, 
which  had  been  manufactured  by  a  pedantic  foreigner, 
whose  name,  fortunately,  has  been  forgotten.  It  was 
formed,  as  he  said,  from  the  words  Le  os  ante  ville,  which 
he  rendered  "  the  village  opposite  the  mouth."  Logicians 
may  decide  whether  the  words  might  not  be  rendered  more 
correctly,  the  mouth  before  the  village.  Be  that  as  it  may, 
the  settlement  then  formed  was  immediately  designated  by 
the  name  adopted  for  the  projected  town  —  though  the  town 
itself  never  was  laid  out,  for  reasons  wThich  will  be  ex- 
plained hereafter.  Yet,  from  the  facts  stated,  a  very  gen- 
eral belief  has  prevailed  that  the  original  name  of  the  town 
of  Cincinnati  was  Losanteville,  and  that  through  the  influ- 
ence of  Governor  St.  Clair  and  others,  that  name  was  aban- 
doned, and  the  name  of  Cincinnati  substituted.  This  im- 
pression, though  a  natural  one,  under  the  circumstances  of 
the  case,  was  nevertheless  incorrect. 

It  is  impossible  to  say  what  influence  operated  on  the 
minds  of  the  proprietors,  to  induce  them  to  adopt  the  name 
of  Cincinnati,  in  preference  to  the  one  previously  proposed. 
Judge  Symmes,  being  on  the  spot,  might  have  advised  it; 
but  it  is  not  probable  that  Governor  St.  Clair  had  any 
agency  in  it,  as  he  was  at  the  time  negotiating  a  treaty 
with  the  north-western  Indians,  at  Marietta,  between  which 
place  and  Cincinnati,  there  was  then  but  very  little  inter- 
course. The  truth  may  be  gathered  from  the  facts  of  the 
case,  which  are  these. 

Matthias  Denman,  of  Springfield,  New  Jersey,  had  pur- 
chased the  fraction  of  land  on  the  bank  of  the  Ohio,  and 
the  entire  section  adjoining  it  on  the  north,  which,  on  the 
survey  of  Symmes'  grant  should  be  found  to  lie  opposite 
the  mouth  of  Licking  river.  In  the  summer  of  1788,  he 
came  out  to  the  west  to  see  the  lands  he  had  purchased, 
and  to  examine  the  country.  On  his  return  to  Limestone, 
he  met  among  others,  Colonel  Patterson,  of  Lexington,  and 
a  surveyor  by  the  name  of  Filson.     Denman  communicated 


48  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

to  them  his  intention  of  laying  out  a  town  on  his  land, 
opposite  Licking  ;  and,  after  some  conversation,  agreed  to 
take  them  in  as  partners,  each  paying  a  third  of  the  pur- 
chase-money ;  and,  on  the  further  condition,  that  Colonel 
Patterson  should  exert  his  influence  to  obtain  settlers,  and 
that  Filson,  in  the  ensuing  spring,  should  survey  the  town, 
stake  off  the  lots,  and  superintend  the  sale.  They  also 
agreed  on  the  plan  of  the  town,  and  to  call  it  Losanteville. 
This  being  done,  Patterson  and  Filson,  with  a  party  of 
settlers,  proceeded  to  the  ground,  where  they  arrived  late  in 
December.  In  the  course  of  the  winter,  before  any  attempt 
had  been  made  to  lay  out  the  town,  Filson  went  on  an  ex- 
ploring expedition,  with  Judge  Symmes,  and  others,  who 
had  it  in  contemplation  to  become  purchasers,  and  settle  in 
the  country.  After  the  party  had  proceeded  some  thirty  or 
forty  miles  into  the  wilderness,  Filson,  for  some  cause  not  now 
known,  left  them,  for  the  purpose  of  returning  to  the  settle- 
ments on  the  Ohio ;  and  in  that  attempt,  was  murdered  by 
the  Indians.  This  terminated  his  contract  with  Denman, 
as  no  part  of  the  consideration  had  been  paid,  and  his  per- 
sonal services,  in  surveying  the  town,  and  superintending 
the  sale  of  the  lots,  had  become  impracticable. 

Mr.  Denman,  being  yet  at  Limestone,  entered  into  ano- 
ther contract  with  Colonel  Patterson  and  Israel  Ludlow,  by 
which  Ludlow  was  to  perform  the  same  services  as  were 
to  have  been  rendered  by  the  unfortunate  Filson,  had  he 
lived  to  execute  his  contract.  A  new  plan  of  a  town  was 
then  made,  differing,  in  many  important  respects,  from  the 
former, — particularly  as  to  the  public  square,  the  commons, 
and  the  names  of  the  streets.  The  whimsical  name  which 
had  been  adopted  for  the  town  to  be  laid  out  under  the 
first  contract,  was  repudiated,  and  Cincinnati  selected,  as 
the  name  of  the  town,  to  be  laid  out  under  the  new  contract. 
Late  in  the  succeeding  fall,  Colonel  Ludlow  commenced  a 
survey  of  the  town  which  has  since  become  the  Queen 
City  of  the  West.     He  first  laid  off  the  lots,  which,  by  pre- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  49 

vious  agreement,  were  to  be  disposed  of  as  donations  to 
volunteer  settlers,  and  completed  the  survey  at  his  leisure. 

A  misapprehension  has  prevailed,  as  appears  from  some 
recent  publications,  in  regard  to  the  price  paid  by  the  pro- 
prietors for  the  land  on  which  the  city  stands.  The 
original  purchase  by  Mr.  Denman,  included  a  section  and  a 
fractional  section,  containing  about  eight  hundred  acres  ;  for 
which  he  paid  five  shillings  per  acre,  in  Continental  Certifi- 
cates, which  were  then  worth,  in  specie,  five  shillings  on  the 
pound — so  that  the  specie  price  per  acre  was  fifteen  pence. 
That  sum  multiplied  by  the  number  of  acres,  will  give  the 
original  cost  of  the  plat  of  Cincinnati. 

The  third  party  of  adventurers  to  the  Miami  Purchase, 
were  under  the  immediate  care  and  direction  of  Judge 
Symmes.  They  left  Limestone  on  the  29th  of  January,  1789, 
and  on  their  passage  down  the  river,  were  obstructed,  de- 
layed, and  exposed  to  imminent  danger  from  floating  ice, 
which  covered  the  river.  They,  however,  reached  the  Bend, 
the  place  of  their  destination,  in  safety,  early  in  February. 
The  first  object  of  the  Judge  was  to  found  a  city  at  that 
place,  which  had  received  the  name  of  North  Bend,  from 
the  fact  that  it  was  the  most  northern  bend  in  the  Ohio  river 
below  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Kanawha. 

The  water-craft  used  in  descending  the  Ohio,  in  those 
primitive  times,  were  flat-boats,  made  of  green  oak  plank, 
fastened  by  wooden  pins  to  a  frame  of  timber,  and  caulked 
with  tow,  or  any  other  pliant  substance  that  could  be  pro- 
cured. Boats  similarly  constructed  on  the  northern  waters, 
were  then  called  arks,  but  on  the  western  rivers,  they  were 
denominated  Kentucky  boats.  The  materials  of  which  they 
were  composed,  were  found  to  be  of  great  utility  in  the  con- 
struction of  temporary  buildings  for  safety,  and  for  protec- 
tion from  the  inclemency  of  the  weather,  after  they  had  ar- 
rived at  their  destination. 

At  the  earnest  solicitation  of  the  Judge,  General  Harmar 
sent  Captain  Kearsey  with  forty-eight  rank  and  file,  to  pro- 
4 


50  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

tect  the  improvements  just  commencing  in  the  Miami  coun- 
try. This  detachment  reached  Limestone  in  December, 
1788,  and  in  a  few  days  after,  Captain  Kearsey  sent  a  part 
of  his  command  in  advance,  as  a  guard  to  protect  the  pio- 
neers under  Major  Stites,  at  the  Little  Miami,  where  they 
arrived  soon  after.  Mr.  Symmes  and  his  party,  accompa- 
nied by  Captain  Kearsey,  landed  at  Columbia,  on  their  pas- 
sage down  the  river,  and  the  detachment  previously  sent  to 
that  place  joined  their  company.  They  then  proceeded  to 
the  Bend,  and  landed  about  the  first  or  second  of  February. 
When  they  left  Limestone  it  was  the  purpose  of  Captain 
Kearsey  to  occupy  the  fort  built  at  the  mouth  of  the  Miami, 
by  a  detachment  of  United  States'  troops,  who  afterwards 
descended  the  river  to  the  Falls. 

That  purpose  was  defeated  by  the  flood  in  the  river,  which 
had  spread  over  the  low  grounds  and  rendered  it  difficult  to 
reach  the  fort.  Captain  Kearsey,  however,  was  anxious  to 
make  the  attempt,  but  the  Judge  would  not  consent  to  it ;  he 
was  of  course  much  disappointed,  and  greatly  displeased. 
When  he  set  out  on  the  expedition,  expecting  to  find  a  fort 
ready  built  to  receive  him,  he  did  not  provide  the  imple- 
ments necessary  to  construct  one.  Thus  disappointed  and 
displeased,  he  resolved  that  he  would  not  attempt  to  con- 
struct a  new  work,  but  would  leave  the  Bend  and  join  the 
garrison  at  Louisville. 

In  pursuance  of  that  resolution,  he  embarked  early  in 
March,  and  descended  the  river  with  his  command.  The 
Judge  immediately  wrote  to  Major  Willis,  commandant  of 
the  garrison  at  the  Falls,  complaining  of  the  conduct  of 
Captain  Kearsey,  representing  the  exposed  situation  of  the 
Miami  settlement,  stating  the  indications  of  hostility  mani- 
fested by  the  Indians,  and  requesting  a  guard  to  be  lent  to 
the  Bend.    This  request  was  promptly  granted,  and  before 

the  close  of  the  month,  Ensign  Luce  arrived  with  seventeen 

or  eighteen  soldier.-,  w  hich,  lor  the  time,  removed  the  appre- 
hensions of  the  pioneers  at  that  place.     It  was  not    long, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY 

51 

however  before  the  Indians  made  an  attack  on  them,  in 
which  they  killed  one  soldier,  and  wounded  four  or  five 
other  persons,  including  Major  J.  R.Mills,  an  emigrant  from 
Ehzabethtown,  New  Jersey,  who  was  a  surveyor,  and  an 
intelligent  and  highly  respected  citizen.  Although  he  reco- 
vered from  his  wounds,  he  felt  their  disabling  effects  to  the 
day  of  his  death. 

The  surface  of  the  ground  where  the  Judge  and  his  party 
had  landed,  was  above  the  reach  of  the  water,  and  suffi- 
ciently level  to  admit  of  a  convenient  settlement.  He 
therefore  determined,  for  the  immediate  accommodation  of 
his  party,  to  lay  out  a  village  at  that  place,  and  to  sus- 
pend, for  the  present,  the  execution  of  his  purpose,  as  to 
the  city,  of  which  he  had  given  notice,  until  satisfactory 
information  could  be  obtained  in  regard  to  the  comparative 
advantages  of  different  places  in  the  vicinity.  The  deter- 
mination, however,  of  laying  out  such  a  city,  was  not 
abandoned,  but  was  executed  in  the  succeeding  year  on  a 
magnificent  scale.  It  included  the  village,  and  extended 
from  the  Ohio  across  the  peninsula  to  the  Miami  river, 
lhis  city,  which  was  certainly  a  beautiful  one,  on  paper, 
was  called  Symmes,  and  for  a  time  was  a  subject  of  con- 
versation and  of  criticism;  but  it  soon  ceased  to  be  remem- 

bere  even  **  "ame  Was  forg<>tten,  and  the  settlement 
continued  to  be  called  North  Bend.  Since  then,  that  vil- 
lage has  been  distinguished  as  the  residence  and  the  home 
oi  the  soldier  and  statesman,  William  Henry  Harrison 
whose  remains  now  repose  in  a  humble  vault  on  one  of  its' 
beautiful  hills. 

In  conformity  with  a  stipulation  made  at  Limestone, 
every  individual  belonging  to  the  party  received  a  donation 
lot,  which  he  was  required  to  improve,  as  the  condition  of 
obtaining  a  title.  As  the  number  of  these  adventurers  in- 
creased m  consequence  of  the  protection  afforded  by  the 
military,  the  Judge  was  induced  to  lay  out  another  village 
six  or  seven  miles  higher  up  the  river,  which  he  calfed 


52 


BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 


South  Bend,  where  he  disposed  of  some  donation  lots ;  but 
that  project  failed,  and  in  a  few  years  the  village  was 
deserted  and  converted  into  a  farm. 

During  these  transactions,  the  Judge  was  visited  by  a 
number  of  Indians  from  a  camp  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Stites'  settlement.  One  of  them,  a  Shawnee  chief,  had 
many  complaints  to  make  of  frauds  practised  on  them  by 
white  traders,  who  fortunately  had  no  connection  with  the 
pioneers.  After  several  conversations,  and  some  small 
presents,  he  professed  to  be  satisfied  with  the  explanation 
he  had  received,  and  gave  assurances  that  the  Indians 
would  trade  with  the  white  men  as  friends. 

In  one  of  their  interviews,  the  Judge  told  him  he  had 
been  commissioned  and  sent  out  to  their  country,  by  the 
thirteen  fires,  in  the  spirit  of  friendship  and  kindness ;  and 
that  he  was  instructed  to  treat  them  as  friends  and  brothers. 
In  proof  of  this,  he  showed  them  the  flag  of  the  Union, 
with  its  stars  and  stripes,  and  also  his  commission,  having 
the  great  seal  of  the  United  States  attached  to  it;  exhibit- 
ing the  American  eagle,  with  the  olive  branch  in  one  claw, 
emblematical  of  peace,  and  the  instrument  of  war  and 
death  in  the  other.  He  explained  the  meaning  of  those 
symbols  to  their  satisfaction,  though  at  first  the  chief  seemed 
to  think  they  were  not  very  striking  emblems  either  of 
peace  or  friendship ;  but  before  he  departed  from  the  Bend, 
he  gave  assurances  of  the  most  friendly  character.  Yet, 
when  they  left  their  camp  to  return  to  their  towns,  they 
carried  oft'  a  number  of  horses  belonging  to  the  Columbia 
settlement,  to  compensate  for  the  injuries  done  them  by 
wandering  traders,  who  had  no  part  or  lot  with  the  pioneers. 
These  depredations  having  been  repeated,  a  party  was  sent 
out  in  pursuit,  who  followed  the  trail  of  the  Indians  a  con- 
siderable distance,  when  they  discovered  fresh  signs,  and 
sent  Captain  Flinn,  one  of  their  party,  in  advance,  to 
reconnoitre,  lie  had  not  proceeded  far  before  he  was  sur- 
prised, taken  prisoner,  and  carried  to   the   Indian  camp. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  53 

Not  liking  the  movements  he  saw  going  on,  which  seemed 
to  indicate  personal  violence,  in  regard  to  himself,  and 
having  great  confidence  in  his  activity  and  strength,  at  a 
favorable  moment,  he  sprang  from  the  camp,  made  his 
escape,  and  joined  his  party.  The  Indians,  fearing  an  am- 
buscade, did  not  pursue.  The  party  possessed  themselves 
of  some  horses  belonging  to  the  Indians,  and  returned  to 
Columbia.  In  a  few  days,  the  Indians  brought  in  Captain 
Flinn's  rifle,  and  begged  Major  Stites  to  restore  their 
horses — alledging  that  they  were  innocent  of  the  depreda- 
tions laid  to  their  charge.  After  some  further  explanations, 
the  matter  was  amicably  settled,  and  the  horses  were  given 
up. 

The  three  principal  settlements  of  the  Miami  country 
were  commenced  in  the  manner  above  described;  and 
although  they  had  one  general  object,  and  were  threatened 
by  one  common  danger,  yet  there  existed  a  strong  spirit 
of  rivalry  between  them — each  feeling  a  pride  in  the  pros- 
perity of  the  little  colony  to  which  he  belonged.  That 
spirit  produced  a  strong  influence  on  the  feelings  of  the 
pioneers  of  the  different  villages,  and  produced  an  esprit  du 
corps,  scarcely  to  be  expected  under  circumstances  so  criti- 
cal and  dangerous  as  those  wThich  threatened  them.  For 
some  time  it  was  a  matter  of  doubt,  which  of  the  rivals, 
Columbia,  Cincinnati,  or  North  Bend,  would  eventually 
become  the  chief  seat  of  business. 

In  the  beginning,  Columbia,  the  eldest  of  the  three,  took 
the  lead,  both  in  the  number  of  its  inhabitants,  and  the  con- 
venience and  appearance  of  its  dwellings.  It  was  a  flour- 
ishing village,  and  many  believed  it  would  become  the 
great  business  town  of  the  Miami  country.  That  delusion, 
however,  lasted  but  a  short  time.  The  garrison  having 
been  established  at  Cincinnati,  made  it  the  he  ad- quarters, 
and  the  depot  of  the  army.  In  addition  to  this,  as  soon  as 
the  County  Courts  of  the  Territory  were  organized,  it  was 
made  the  seat  of  justice  of  Hamilton  county.     These  ad- 


54  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

vantages   convinced   every  body  that  it  was  destined  to 
become  the  emporium  of  the  Miami  country. 

At  first,  North  Bend  had  a  decided  advantage  over  it; 
as  the  troops  detailed  by  General  Harmar  for  the  protec- 
tion of  the  Miami  pioneers  were  landed  there,  through  the 
influence  of  Judge  S}^mmes.  That  consideration  induced 
many  of  the  first  adventurers  to  plant  themselves  at  the 
Bend,  believing  it  to  be  the  place  of  the  greatest  safety. 
But,  as  has  been  stated,  that  detachment  soon  took  its  de- 
parture for  Louisville.  It  appears  also  that  Ensign  Luce, 
the  commandant  of  the  party  which  succeeded  it,  did  not 
feel  bound  to  erect  his  fort  at  any  particular  place,  but  was 
at  liberty  to  select  the  spot  best  calculated  to  afford  the 
most  extensive  protection  to  the  Miami  settlers.  Viewing 
his  duty  in  that  light,  he  put  up  a  small  temporary  work, 
sufficient  for  the  security  of  his  troops,  regardless  of  the 
earnest  entreaty  of  the  Judge,  to  proceed  at  once  to  erect  a 
substantial,  spacious,  block-house,  sufficient  for  the  protec- 
tion of  the  inhabitants  of  the  village. 

The  remonstrances  and  entreaties  of  the  Judge  had  but 
little  influence  on  the  mind  of  this  obstinate  officer;  for,  in 
despite  of  them  all,  he  left  the  Bend,  and  proceeded  to  Cin- 
cinnati with  his  command,  where  he  immediately  com- 
menced the  construction  of  a  military  work.  That  impor- 
tant move  was  followed  by  very  decided  results  —  it  ter- 
minated the  strife  for  supremacy,  by  removing  the  only 
motive  which  had  induced  former  emigrants  to  pass  the 
settlements  above,  and  proceed  to  the  Bend.  As  soon  as 
the  troops  removed  from  that  place  to  Cincinnati,  the  set- 
tlers of  the  Bend,  who  were  then  the  most  numerous,  feel- 
ing the  loss  of  the  protection  on  which  they  had  relied, 
became  uneasy,  and  began  to  follow;  and  ere  long  the 
place  was  almost  entirely  deserted,  and  the  hope  of  making 
it,  even  a  respectable  town,  was  abandoned. 

In  the  course  of  the  ensuing  summer,  Major  Doughty 
arrived  at  Cincinnati,  with  troops  from  Fort   Harmar,  and 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  55 

commenced  the  construction  of  Fort  Washington,  which 
was  the  most  extensive  and  important  military  work  in  the 
Territory  belonging  to  the  United  States. 

About  that  time  there  wras  a  rumor  prevailing  in  the  set- 
tlement, said  to  have  been  endorsed  by  the  Judge  himself, 
which  goes  far  to  unravel  the  mystery,  in  which  the  remo- 
val of  the  troops  from  the  Bend  was  involved.  It  wras  said 
and  believed,  that  while  the  officer  in  command  at  that 
place  was  looking  out  very  leisurely  for  a  suitable  site,  on 
which  to  build  the  block-house,  he  formed  an  acquaintance 
with  a  beautiful  black-eyed  female,  who  called  forth  his 
most  assiduous  and  tender  attentions.  She  was  the  wife 
of  one  of  the  settlers  at  the  Bend.  Her  husband  saw  the 
danger  to  which  he  would  be  exposed,  if  he  remained 
where  he  was.  He  therefore  resolved  at  once  to  remove 
to  Cincinnati,  and  very  promptly  executed  his  resolution. 

As  soon  as  the  gallant  commandant  discovered  that  the 
object  of  his  admiration  had  changed  her  residence,  he  be- 
gan to  think  that  the  Bend  was  not  an  advantageous  situa- 
tion for  a  military  work,  and  communicated  that  opinion  to 
Judge  Symmes,  who  strenuously  opposed  it.  His  reasoning, 
however,  was  not  as  persuasive  as  the  sparkling  eyes  of  the 
fair  dulcinea  then  at  Cincinnati.  The  result  was  a  deter- 
mination to  visit  Cincinnati,  and  examine  its  advantages  for 
a  military  post,  which  he  communicated  to  the  Judge,  with 
an  assurance  that  if,  on  examination,  it  did  not  prove  to  be 
the  most  eligible  place,  he  would  return  and  erect  the  fort 
at  the  Bend. 

The  visit  was  quickly  made,  and  resulted  in  a  conviction 
that  the  Bend  could  not  be  compared  with  Cincinnati  as  a 
military  position.  The  troops  were  accordingly  removed  to 
that  place,  and  the  building  of  a  block-house  commenced. 
Whether  this  structure  was  on  the  ground  on  which  Fort 
Washington  was  erected  by  Major  Doughty,  cannot  now  be 
decided. 

That  movement,  produced  by  a  cause  whimsical,  and  ap- 


56  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

parently  trivial  in  itself,  was  attended  with  results  of  incal- 
culable importance.  It  settled  the  question  whether  North 
Bend,  or  Cincinnati,  was  to  be  the  great  commercial  town 
of  the  Miami  Country.  Thus  we  see  what  unexpected  re- 
sults are  sometimes  produced  by  circumstances  apparently 
trivial.  The  incomparable  beauty  of  a  Spartan  dame,  pro- 
duced a  ten  year's  war,  which  terminated  in  the  destruction 
of  Troy;  and  the  irresistible  charms  of  another  female, 
transferred  the  commercial  emporium  of  Ohio  from  the 
place  where  it  had  been  commenced,  to  the  place  where  it 
now  is.  If  this  captivating  American  Helen  had  continued 
at  the  Bend,  the  garrison  would  have  been  erected  there — 
population,  capital,  and  business,  would  have  centered  there, 
and  there  would  have  been  the  Queen  City  of  the  West. 

It  has  been  made  a  question,  at  what  period  the  settle- 
ment of  the  Northwestern  Territory  may  be  fairly  consid- 
ered as  having  commenced.  Although  individuals,  and 
small  exploring  parties,  connected  with  the  Ohio  Company, 
visited  their  purchase  occasionally  in  1786,  but  more  fre- 
quently in  1787,  yet  it  cannot  be  said  that  the  settlement  of 
it  commenced  in  good  earnest  till,  the  7th  of  April,  1788; 
when  they  planted  a  numerous,  well  provided  colony,  at  the 
junction  of  the  Ohio  and  Muskingum  rivers,  in  the  immedi- 
ate neighborhood  of  Fort  Harmar,  then  occupied  by  a  gar- 
rison of  American  troops. 

That  movement  has  been  properly  considered  as  the  com- 
mencement of  the  permanent  occupancy  and  settlement  of 
that  part  of  the  Territory.  In  the  spring  and  summer  of 
1788,  a  few  emigrants  came  to  the  Miami  Purchase,  some 
of  whom  remained  and  joined  the  pioneer  parties  before 
mentioned,  in  the  fall  and  winter  of  1788-9;  but  the  per- 
manent occupancy  of  that  part  of  the  country  must  be 
dated  from  the  succeeding  year,  when  the  three  chief  settle- 
ments, at  Columbia,  Cincinnati,  and  the  Bend,  were  begun 
with  such  numbers,  and  in  such  a  spirit,  as  evinced  a  firm 
determination  to  persevere  and  hold  the  country  at  all 
hazards. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  57 

When  these  settlements  were  commenced  by  emigrants 
who  resorted  to  them,  early  in  1788,  provision  had  not  been 
made  for  the  regular  administration  of  justice.  Judicial 
Courts  had  not  been  organized,  and  the  inhabitants  found 
themselves  in  an  unpleasant  situation,  as  they  were  ex- 
posed to  the  depredations  of  dishonest,  unprincipled  men, 
without  the  means  of  legal  redress.  To  remedy  that  evil 
the  people  assembled  to  consult,  and  devise  a  plan  for  their 
common  safety ;  they  chose  a  Chairman  and  a  Secretary, 
and  proceeded  to  business.  The  meeting  resulted  in  the 
adoption  of  a  code  of  By-Laws  for  the  government  of  the 
settlement,  in  which  they  prescribed  the  punishment  to  be 
inflicted  for  various  offences — organized  a  Court — estab- 
lished the  trial  by  jury — appointed  Mr.  McMillan  Judge, 
and  John  Ludlow,  Sheriff. 

To  these  regulations  they  all  agreed,  and  each  gave  a 
solemn  pledge  to  aid  in  carrying  them  into  effect.  It  was 
not  long  before  a  complaint  was  made  against  Paddy 
Grimes,  for  robbing  a  truck-patch,  on  which  the  Sheriff  was 
commanded  to  arrest  him,  and  summon  a  jury  for  his  trial. 
The  order  was  obeyed,  and  on  hearing  the  evidence,  the 
jury  found  him  guilty,  and  he  was  sentenced  to  receive 
twenty-nine  lashes,  which  were  inflicted  in  due  form  on  the 
same  afternoon.  Other  complaints  of  a  similar  character 
were  made,  but.  in  consequence  of  the  interference  of  the 
officer  in  command  of  the  garrison,  no  further  decisive  pro- 
ceedings were  had;  and  this  useful  tribunal,  organized  for 
self-protection,  on  the  genuine  principles  of  Judge  Lynch, 
was  abandoned — but  not  without  a  serious  conflict  be- 
tween the  citizens  and  the  military,  in  which  Mr.  McMillan 
received  very  serious  and  permanent  injuries. 

Fortunately,  this  state  of  things  was  soon  terminated  by 
the  establishment  of  "A  General  Court  of  Quarter  Sessions  of 
the  Peace  and  County  Courts  of  Common  Pleas,"  by  virtue 
of  a  law  for  that  purpose,  published  at  Marietta  on  the  23d 
of  August,  1788,  which  superseded  the  Lynch  code,  before 


58  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

it  had  been  in  operation  an  entire  year.  Mr.  McMillan 
was  appointed  the  Presiding  Judge  of  those  Courts  in  the 
county  of  Hamilton. 

The  professions  of  friendship  made  by  the  Indians  in  the 
winter  of  1788-9,  whether  sincere   or  not,  were  of  short 
duration.      The  prevailing  opinion  at  the  time  was,  that 
they  were  sincere ;  and  that  the  assurances  given  by  Judge 
Symmes,  had  removed  from  their  minds,  the  apprehension 
of  danger,  produced  by  the  unexpected  occupancy  of  so 
many  parts  of  their  country  simultaneously.     It  required, 
however,  but  a  short  time  to  solve  that  matter.     Within  a 
few  days  after  those  assurances  were  given,  depredations 
were  perpetrated  on  the  property  of  the   emigrants,  and 
soon  after,  on  their  lives;  so  that  before  the  year  closed 
the   existence  of  war,  undisguised,  was   apparent  to   all. 
That  condition  of  things  was  attributed,  in  part,  to  the 
frauds  practised  on  the  Indians  by  unprincipled,  wandering 
traders,  wholly  unconnected  with  the  pioneer  settlers ;  and, 
in  part,  to  the    efforts   of  persons  in   the   employ  of  the 
British  Fur  Company,  to  poison  their  minds  and  instigate 
them  to  hostility,  by  telling  them  that  the  Americans  were 
maturing  a  plan  to  seize   their  country,  and  drive   them 
beyond  the  Lakes.     An   attempt  to  solve  those  questions, 
or  account  for  the  conduct  of  the  Indians,  would  probably 
be   considered,  at   this   day,  as   a  useless  waste  of  time. 
The  first  year  after  those  assurances  were  made,  had  not 
expired,  when  Filson  was  killed — the  settlement  of  Major 
Stites  plundered  —  Captain  Flinn  taken  prisoner — a  sur- 
veying party  under  Mr.  Mills,   attacked,  with  the  loss  of 
two  men  killed  —  and  the  settlement  at  the  Bend  assailed, 
on  which  occasion  one  man  was  killed  and  several  others 
wounded. 

To  these  occurrences,  which  took  place  in  less  than  a 
year,  after  the  assurances  of  friendship  referred  to,  were 
made  to  the  Judge,  may  be  added,  many  other  acts  of  vio- 
lence and  murder  which  followed  in  quick  succession  —  as 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  59 

for  example,  the  assassination  of  Hunt,  Cutter,  Freeman, 
Truman,  and  Hardin  —  and  the  list  might  be  enlarged  still 
further,  were  it  necessary.  These  losses  were  in  part 
attributed  to  the  want  of  such  military  protection  as  Judge 
Symmes  alledged  was  in  the  power  of  General  Harmar  to 
afford. 

Although  that  officer  had  but  a  single  regiment  at  his 
disposal,  yet,  as  the  points  to  be  protected  were  few,  it 
was  believed  he  might  have  accomplished  the  object  to  a 
greater  extent  than  he  did.  The  Muskingum  and  the 
Miami  settlements  were  the  only  ones  then  existing  in  the 
Territory.  They  varied  but  little  in  numbers,  and  yet  the 
latter  was  left  for  protection  with  less  than  an  average 
of  half  a  company,  during  the  first,  and  a  part  of  the 
second,  year.  At  this  unequal  disposition  of  the  troops, 
the  Judge  complained.  He  charged  General  Harmar  with 
partiality,  and  his  feelings  were  so  much  excited  by  this 
palpable  neglect,  that  he  instructed  his  agent  in  New 
Jersey,  to  present  the  case  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  and 
request  his  interposition.  It  does  not  appear  that  such  a 
complaint  was  made,  or,  if  made,  that  any  serious  notice 
was  taken  of  it. 

It  is  impossible  to  look  at  the  condition  of  the  Miami  coun- 
try in  1788  and  1789,  without  coming  to  the  conclusion  that 
such  a  military  force  as  might  have  been  stationed  there, 
without  inconvenience,  and  without  injustice  to  any  other 
portion  of  the  Territory,  would  have  prevented  much  suf- 
fering—  saved  many  losses  —  and  induced  a  number  of  the 
early  emigrants  to  establish  themselves  in  that  delightful 
region,  who  turned  from  it  in  consequence  of  its  exposed 
and  unprotected  condition,  and  made  their  locations  else- 
where. This  difficulty  is  most  probably  ascribable  to  the 
fact,  that  an  unreasonable  proportion  of  the  regiment  was 
stationed  at  the  Falls,  during  this  period  of  difficulty  and 
danger.    To  one  who  knew  the  defenceless  situation  of  those 


60  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

settlements,  it  is  matter  of  surprise,  that  they  did  not  suffer 
more  severely  than  they  did. 

It  is  a  perversion  of  language,  to  apply  the  phrase  mili- 
tary protection,  to  any  thing  enjoyed  by  the  Miami  people, 
at  the  time  when  protection  was  most  wanted.  If  it  be 
asked  what  protection  they  really  did  receive,  during  the 
period  of  their  greatest  exposure,  the  answer  may  be  given 
in  few  words.  Eighteen  soldiers  were  stationed  about 
thirty  days  at  Columbia,  in  the  fall  of  1788;  one  company 
halted  at  North  Bend  thirty-four  days,  in  the  winter  of 
1788-9;  after  which  a  detachment  of  eighteen,  rank-and- 
file,  landed  at  the  same  place,  where  they  remained  a  few 
days,  and  then  proceeded  to  Cincinnati.  This  constitutes 
the  military  protection  afforded  to  three  infant  settlements, 
extending  nearly  thirty  miles  in  an  enemy's  country. 
"  Risum  teneatis  amiciP 

After  looking  on  this  picture,  nobody  can  feel  surprised 
that  Judge  Symmes,  whose  life  and  fortune  were  at  stake, 
should  lose  his  temper  and  complain.  In  spite,  however, 
of  those  early  disadvantages,  the  Miami  valley  took  the 
lead  of  every  other  portion  of  the  great  West,  in  population 
and  enterprise. 

At  the  time  here  spoken  of,  the  woods  were  literally 
swarming  with  Indians,  scattered  in  every  direction ;  and, 
in  addition  to  other  difficulties,  those  who  ventured  into  the 
wilderness,  from  duty  or  choice,  were  in  constant  danger 
of  meeting  some  of  those  parties,  and  suffering  the  conse- 
quences. It  was  a  matter  of  surprise,  to  all  who  were 
conversant  with  the  condition  of  the  army,  during  the  whole 
period  of  the  Indian  war,  that  so  many,  and  such  fearful 
risks  were  run,  attended  with  so  small  a  number  of  disas- 
ters. Next  to  the  protecting  care  of  Providence,  this  is 
ascribable  to  an  insensibility  to  danger,  produced  by  a 
constant  exposure,  which  renders  the  mind  callous,  and  at 
the  same  time  collected ;  and  prepares  it  to  act  promptly, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  (Jl 

in  any  emergency.  It  is  known  from  experience,  that  ha- 
bitual exposure  to  danger  robs  it  of  its  terrors,  and  inspire  s 
the  white  man  with  the  same  presence  of  mind,  the  same 
vigilance,  and  the  same  acuteness  of  perception  of  the 
presence  of  danger,  or  the  near  approach  of  an  enemy, 
which  the  aborigines  possess  in  so  remarkable  a  degree. 

Those  persons  who  had  early  intercourse  with  the  officers 
who  served  in  the  western  campaigns,  were  surprised  at 
the  levity  with  which  they  spoke  of  their  exposures  and 
hair-breadth  escapes;  and  the  calm  indifference  manifested 
at  the  recital  of  scenes  of  disaster,  which  must  have  been 
highly  distressing.  This  did  not  proceed  from  any  want  of 
natural  tenderness  or  sympathy,  but  from  temporary  ob- 
tuseness  of  feeling,  acquired  during  their  campaigns  in  the 
Indian  country. 

It  seems  to  be  a  kind  provision  of  Providence,  that  men 
constitutionally  timid  and  sensitive  to  danger,  cease  to  be 
agitated  by  fear,  after  they  have  become  familiar  with 
scenes  of  distress  and  objects  of  misery.  Under  such  cir- 
cumstances they  soon  learn  that  steady  nerves  are  neces- 
sary to  ensure  personal  safety,  and  that  the  indulgence  of 
fear  agitates  the  mind,  and  renders  it  unfit  to  draw  safe 
conclusions,  when  pressing  danger  calls  for  instant  action. 


CHAPTER    III. 

Counties  in  the  Territory. — Their  Seats  of  Justice  and  Courts. — The  General 
Court. — Its  powers. — Its  usurpations  as  Legislators. — Fatigue  and  exposure 
of  the  Bar. — Extent  of  their  circuit. — A  game  of  Indian  foot-ball. — Journey 
from  Cincinnati  to  Vincennes,  in  December,  1799. — Gen.  George  Rogers 
Clark. — His  achievements  and  victories. — His  conquests  the  chief  ground  of 
the  American  claim  to  the  North-western  Territory. — Embarrassments  of 
his  situation. — His  expedients  to  support  his  troops. — Ingratitude  of  the 
Government. 

When  the  writer  of  these  notes  came  to  Cincinnati,  only 
four  counties  had  been  established  and  organized  in  the 
Territory — each  of  which  was  sufficiently  extensive  to  form 
an  independent  state.  They  bore  the  names  of  Washing- 
ton, Hamilton,  St.  Clair,  and  Knox ;  in  honor  of  the  distin- 
guished revolutionary  patriots  after  whom  they  were  called, 
and  who,  in  public  estimation,  stood  on  the  scale  of  merit, 
in  the  order  in  which  they  are  here  named.  The  seat  of 
justice  of  the  county  first  mentioned,  was  established  at 
Marietta — the  second  at  Cincinnati — the  third  at  Kaskas- 
kias — and  the  fourth  at  Vincennes,  then  generally  called 
Au  Post. 

As  the  population  of  the  territory  increased,  new  settle- 
ments were  formed,  and  the  Governor  proceeded,  from  time 
to  time,  as  the  convenience  of  the  inhabitants  required,  to 
lay  out  and  organize  other  counties,  under  the  power  dele- 
gated by  the  ordinance ;  in  each  of  which,  Courts  of  Com- 
mon Pleas,  and  General  Quarter  Sessions  of  the  Peace, 
vested  with  civil  and  criminal  jurisdiction,  were  established. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  63 

The  General  Court  consisted  of  three  judges,  appointed 
by  the  President,  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate ; 
each  of  whom  received  a  salary  of  eight  hundred  dollar.-. 
from  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States.  It  was  the  highest 
judicial  tribunal  in  the  Territory,  and  was  vested  with 
original  and  appellate  jurisdiction  in  all  civil  and  criminal 
cases,  and  of  capital  cases :  and  on  questions  of  divorce  and 
alimony,  its  jurisdiction  was  exclusive.  It  was,  however,  a 
Common  Law  Court  merely,  without  Chancery  powers,  and 
it  was  the  court  of  dernier  resort. 

It  had  power  to  revise  and  reverse  the  decisions  of  all 
other  tribunals  in  the  Territory;  yet  its  own  proceedings 
could  not  be  reversed  or  set  aside,  even  by  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States.  It  was  held  at  Cincinnati,  in 
March;  at  Marietta,  in  October;  at  Detroit,  and  in  the 
western  counties,  at  such  time  in  each  year  as  the  judges 
saw  proper  to  designate. 

In  conjunction  with  the  Governor,  or,  in  his  absence,  the 
Secretary  of  the  Territory,  they  were  constituted  a  legisla- 
tive body,  and  vested  with  power  to  adopt  any  law  in  force 
in  either  of  the  original  states ;  and  it  was  made  their  duty 
to  report  all  laws  so  adopted,  to  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States,  for  their  approbation.  If  they  were  approved  by 
that  body,  they  became  the  laws  of  the  Territory,  until 
repealed  by  themselves,  or  by  the  General  Assembly,  there- 
after to  be  established. 

From  some  cause  or  other,  those  intelligent  men,  at  first, 
overlooked  the  restriction  imposed  on  their  power,  by  the 
ordinance ;  and  proceeded  to  enact  laws  at  their  own  dis- 
cretion— which,  of  course,  could  not  be  approved  by  Con- 
gress. And  moreover,  after  they  recognized  the  restriction, 
and  professed  to  conform  to  it,  any  person  who  will  be  at 
the  trouble  of  collating  the  laws  professedly  adopted,  with 
the  originals  in  the  statute  books  from  which  they  were 
taken,  will  find  that  all  of  them  are  more  or  less  altered 
and  modified,  in  substance  as  well  as  in  form ;  and  many  of 


64  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

them  so  mutilated  and  changed  as  to  retain  but  little  more 
than  the  title  and  the  enacting  clause.  According  to  their 
construction  of  the  compact,  the  limitation  imposed  on  their 
discretion  was  entirely  useless. 

The  propriety  of  their  course  was  frequently  questioned 
by  the  bar,  and  a  disposition  existed  to  test  its  validity. 
No  attempt,  however,  was  made  for  that  purpose,  in  conse- 
quence, probably,  of  the  fact,  that  Congress  had  merely 
withheld  their  assent,  without  expressing  an  actual  dissent; 
and  that  as  the  validity  of  the  laws  would  be  decided  by 
the  same  men  who  passed  them,  the  hope  of  a  successful 
result  was  too  weak  to  justify  the  undertaking.  The  con- 
sequence was,  that  all  the  laws  professedly  adopted  and 
promulgated  by  that  quasi  Legislature,  were  treated  as 
constitutional  by  the  bar  and  by  the  Courts,  and  were  con- 
tinued in  force  till  they  were  confirmed,  repealed,  or 
amended,  and  adopted  by  the  Legislature  of  the  Territory. 

The  Governor,  who  acted  with  the  Judges,  as  one  of  the 
Legislative  Council,  in  the  adoption  of  those  laws,  remon- 
strated against  the  course  pursued  at  the  time ;  and  after- 
wards, in  his  first  address  to  the  Territorial  Legislature,  in 
1799,  called  their  attention  to  the  subject,  and  recommended 
such  legislation  as  might  be  thought  necessary  to  legalize 
the  proceeding,  or  remove  any  doubt  that  might  exist  in 
reference  to  it.  In  conformity  with  that  recommendation, 
the  subject  was  taken  up,  and  the  remedy  applied. 

A  reference  to  the  map  of  the  Territory,  showing  the 
relative  position  of  the  seats  of  justice  of  the  different 
counties,  as  they  were  at  that  time,  separated  from  each 
other  by  extensive  tracts  of  uninhabited  wilderness ;  stretch- 
ing from  a  hundred  and  fifty  to  two  hundred  miles,  without 
roads,  bridges,  or  ferries,  would  lead  to  the  opinion,  that 
the  legal  business  of  each  county  was  done  exclusively, 
by  those  professional  men  who  resided  at  its  seat  of  justice. 
That,  however,  was  not  the  case.  From  the  year  1790,  till 
the  formation  of  the  State  Government  in  1803,  the  bar  of 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  <;r> 

Hamilton  county  occasionally  attended  the  General  Court 
at  Marietta,  and  at  Detroit,  and  during  the  whole  of  that 
time,  Mr.  St.  Clair,  Mr.  Symmes,  and  Mr.  Burnet,  never 
missed  a  term  in  either  of  those  counties. 

The  journeys  of  the  Court  and  Bar,  to  those  remote 
places,  through  a  country  in  its  primitive  state,  were  una- 
voidably attended  with  fatigue  and  exposure.  They  gen- 
erally traveled  with  five  or  six  in  company,  and  with  a 
pack-horse  to  transport  such  necessaries  as  their  own 
horses  could  not  conveniently  carry,  because  no  dependence 
could  be  placed  on  obtaining  supplies  on  the  route  :  al- 
though they  frequently  passed  through  Indian  camps  and 
villages,  it  was  not  safe  to  rely  on  them  for  assistance. 
Occasionally,  small  quantities  of  corn  could  be  purchased 
for  horse  feed,  but  even  that  relief  was  precarious,  and  not 
to  be  relied  on. 

In  consequence  of  the  unimproved  condition  of  the  coun- 
try, the  routes  followed  by  travelers  were  necessarily  cir- 
cuitous, and  their  progress  slow.  In  passing  from  one 
county  seat  to  another,  they  were  generally  from  six  to 
eight,  an$  sometimes  ten,  days  in  the  wilderness ;  and,  at 
all  seascjins  of  the  year,  were  compelled  to  swim  every 
water  course  in  their  way,  which  was  too  deep  to  be 
forded;  the  country  being  wholly  destitute  of  bridges  and 
ferries :  travelers  had  therefore  to  rely  on  their  horses,  as 
the  only  substitute  for  those  conveniencies.  That  fact 
made  it  common,  when  purchasing  a  horse,  to  ask  if  he 
were  a  good  swimmer,  which  was  considered  one  of  the 
most  valuable  qualities  of  a  saddlehorse.  Strange  as  this 
may  now  appear,  it  was  then  a  very  natural  enquiry;  and 
the  importance  of  it  may  be  seen  from  the  following  con- 
cise narrative. 

In  the  fall  of  1801,  Mr.   Burnet,  on  his  return  from  the 
General  Court  at  Marietta,  without  company,  found  it  ne- 
cessary in  consequence  of  recent  heavy  rains,  to  swim  his 
horse  frequently  on  the  route,  once  at  White  Oak,  which 
5 


66  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

was  unusually  high ;  the  bottom  on  the  east  side  being  en- 
tirely flooded.  When  he  first  approached  it,  he  paused  and 
hesitated,  but  on  discovering  that  the  water  was  yet  rising, 
he  determined  to  proceed.  To  keep  his  papers  dry,  they 
were  removed  from  his  saddle-bags  to  his  cloak,  which  was 
rolled  up  and  tied  behind  him.  The  opposite  bank  was  a 
bluff,  through  which  a  pathway  had  been  dug  to  the  water's 
edge  for  the  safety  and  convenience  of  travelers. 

After  wading  through  the  bottom  to  the  margin  of  the 
creek  he  stopped  and  calculated  the  velocity  of  the  current 
as  well  as  he  could,  by  the  movement  of  the  drift  wood,  for 
the  purpose  of  deciding  how  far  he  should  enter  above  the 
path,  to  strike  the  opposite  landing;  this  done,  he  put  in, 
with  his  horse's  head  bearing  up  stream,  but  the  animal 
chose  to  steer  for  himself,  and  seeing  the  landing  place  on 
the  opposite  side,  made  directly  for  it.  Being  a  fine  swim- 
mer, he  struck  it  at  the  lower  point,  so  as  to  enable  his  rider 
to  seize  a  bush  in  the  edge  of  the  water  by  which  he  aided 
the  animal  in  extricating  both  himself  and  rider  from  the 
most  imminent  danger.  About  two  miles  further  on,  he 
swam  another  small  run,  which  was  swollen  to  an  unusual 
height.  A  few  miles  still  further,  brought  him  to  the  east 
fork  of  the  Miami,  opposite  Williamsburg,  which  he  also 
swam,  rather  than  wait  for  a  canoe  to  be  sent  over.  On  the 
next  day  he  had  to  swim  the  same  stream  near  where  the 
town  of  Batavia  now  stands,  and  afterwards,  the  Little  Mi- 
ami, at  Turpin's  Bottom.  This  adventure  furnishes  the 
reason  why  dexterity  in  swimming  was  so  highly  prized  in 
a  saddle  horse  in  those  primitive  times. 

Exposures  of  a  similar  nature  were  frequent.  In  the  pre- 
ceding fall,  Judge  Symmes,  in  company  with  five  or  six  of 
the  Cincinnati  Bar,  set  out  from  that  place  for  Marietta,  to 
attend  the  General  Court.  They  traveled  the  route  by  Chil- 
licothe  and  the  Scioto  saltworks,  crossing  the  Hocking  river 
near  the  place  where  the  town  of  Athens  now  stands.  At 
that  place  they  found  a  cabin,  and  were  informed   by  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY. 


67 


family  occupying  it,  that  six  or  eight  miles  below,  there  was 
a  path  leading  from  the  river  direct  to  Marietta,  which  was 
a  nearer  and  better  way  than  they  had  been  accustomed  to 
travel,  by  the  mouth  of  that  river.  When  they  came  to  the 
path  which  had  been  recommended,  it  was  late  in  the  after- 
noon, and  the  clouds  threatened  rain  ;  they  determined,  how- 
ever, to  take  it,  and  proceeded  on  their  journey.  As  long 
as  daylight  lasted  they  succeeded  very  well,  but  night  soon 
came  on,  and  it  became  so  extremely  dark  that  it  was  al- 
most impossible  to  keep  the  path,  which  was  covered  with 
fallen  leaves.  This  induced  some  of  the  party  to  call  a 
halt,  and  propose  to  stop  and  encamp  for  the  night;  but  the 
majority  determined  to  proceed,  and  that  one  at  a  time 
should  dismount,  and  lead  the  way  on  foot,  relying  on  the 
sense  of  feeling  to  keep  the  path.  This  plan  was  adopted, 
and  the  party  went  on  slowly. 

Some  time  after  midnight,  Mr.  B.  was  on  foot,  leading  his 
horse,  in  front,  and  feeling  for  the  path,  when  he  stepped 
down  a  precipice  about  three  feet ;  his  horse  being  fright- 
ened, suddenly  drew  back,  and  prevented  him  from  falling. 
On  regaining  his  former  position,  it  was  ascertained  that  a 
little  in  the  rear  of  that  precipice,  the  path  turned  to  the  left 
at  nearly  a  right  angle,  and  went  down  a  sidelong  hill  some 
fifty  feet  or  more,  to  a  creek,  which  proved  to  be  Wolf 
creek.  On  the  opposite  bank,  it  was  ascertained  by  the 
barking  of  dogs,  that  there  was  an  inhabited  cabin,  into 
which,  after  many  entreaties  and  multiplied  assurances  that 
they  were  honest,  peaceable  travelers,  they  were  admitted, 
and  sheltered  for  the  residue  of  the  night.  The  next 
morning,  a  ride  of  twelve  miles  took  the  party  to  Marietta. 

After  the  close  of  the  Term,  Mr.  B.  with  two  or  three  of 
the  party,  returned  home  by  the  same  route.  When  they 
arrived  at  Wolf  creek,  and  he  saw,  that  within  three  feet  of 
the  small  precipice,  from  which  he  had  stepped  in  the  dark, 
there  was  another,  almost  perpendicular,  down  to  the  bed  of 
the  creek,  and  saw  the  tops  of  the  trees  immediately  below, 


68  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

into  which  a  step  or  two  more  would  have  carried  him,  his 
feelings  may  be  imagined,  but  cannot  be  described. 

Such  excursions  were  frequent  during  the  first  twelve  or 
thirteen  years  after  the  settlement  of  the  Territory  began ; 
and  although  they  were  attended  with  privation  and  ex- 
posure, and  often  with  great  personal  danger,  yet  they  were 
not  destitute  of  interest,  or  amusement.  The  exploration 
of  the  rich,  luxuriant  forest  and  prairie,  through  which  they 
passed,  could  not  fail  to  produce  the  most  pleasurable  sen- 
sations. The  opportunity  of  learning  the  habits,  and  mode 
of  living,  of  the  Aborigines,  and  of  studying  the  peculiari- 
ties of  their  character,  was  a  matter  of  interest  to  every 
traveler;  and  scarcely  a  day  passed  without  some  occur- 
rence of  an  amusing  or  instructive  nature. 

On  one  of  the  journeys  of  the  Court  and  Bar,  to  Detroit, 
they  arrived  at  the  Ottawa  town,  on  the  Auglaize,  about  the 
middle  of  the  day,  and  accepted  an  invitation  to  remain 
there  till  the  next  morning.  Blue  Jacket,  the  Shawnee  chief, 
who  commanded  in  the  battle  of  the  20th  of  August,  1794, 
resided  at  that  village,  but  was  then  absent.  The  party, 
however,  were  received  very  kindly  by  the  venerable  old 
Delaware  chief  Bu-kon-ge-he-las,  whose  name  has  been 
given  to  a  fine  mill-stream  in  Logan  county.  He  was  one 
of  the  chiefs  who  negotiated  the  treaty  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Big  Miami,  with  General  George  R.  Clark,  in  1786,  in  which 
his  name  is  written  Bo-hon-ghe-lass. 

In  the  course  of  the  afternoon  he  got  up  a  game  of  foot- 
ball, for  the  amusement  of  his  guests,  in  the  true  aboriginal 
style.  He  selected  two  young  men  to  get  a  purse  of  trin- 
kets made  up,  to  be  the  reward  of  the  successful  party. 
That  matter  was  soon  accomplished,  and  the  whole  village, 
male  and  female,  in  their  best  attire,  were  on  the  lawn ; 
which  was  a  beautiful  plain  of  four  or  five  acres,  in  the  cen- 
ter of  the  village,  thickly  set  in  blue  grass.  At  each  of  the 
opposite  extremes  of  this  lawn,  two  stakes  were  set  up, 
about  six  feet  apart. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  69 

The  men  played  against  the  women ;  and  to  countervail 
the  superiority  of  their  strength,  it  was  a  rule  of  the  game, 
that  they  were  not  to  touch  the  ball  with  their  hands  on  the 
penalty  of  forfeiting  the  purse;  while  the  females  had  the 
privilege  of  using  their  hands  as  well  as  their  feet;  they 
were  allowed  to  pick  up  the  ball  and  run  and  throw  it  as  far 
as  their  strength  and  activity  would  permit.  When  a  squaw 
succeeded  in  getting  the  ball,  the  men  were  allowed  to  seize 
— whirl  her  round,  and  if  necessary,  throw  her  on  the  grass 
for  the  purpose  of  disengaging  the  ball— taking  care  not  to 
touch  it  except  with  their  feet. 

The  contending  parties  arranged  themselves  in  the  center 
of  the  lawn— the  men  on  one  side  and  the  women  on  the 
other— each  party  facing  the  goal  of  their  opponents.  The 
side  which  succeeded  in  driving  the  ball  through  the  stakes, 
at  the  goal  of  their  adversaries,  were  proclaimed  victors, 
and  received  the  purse,  to  be  divided  among  them. 

All  things  being  ready,  the  old  chief  came  on  the  lawn, 
and  saying  something  in  the  Indian  language  not  under- 
stood by  his  guests,  threw  up  the  ball  between  the  lines  of 
the  combatants  and  retired;  when  the  contest  began.  The 
parties  were  pretty  fairly  matched  as  to  numbers,  having 
about  a  hundred  on  a  side,  and  for  a  long  time  the  game 
appeared  to  be  doubtful.  The  young  squaws  were  the 
most  active  of  their  party,  and  most  frequently  caught  the 
ball;  when  it  was  amusing  to  see  the  struggle  between 
them  and  the  young  men,  which  generally  terminated  in 
the  prostration  of  the  squaw  upon  the  grass,  before  the 
ball  could  be  forced  from  her  hand. 

The  contest  continued  about  an  hour,  with  great  anima- 
tion and  various  prospects  of  success;  but  was  finally  de- 
cided in  favor  of  the  fair  sex,  by  the  herculean  strength  of 
a  mammoth  squaw,  who  got  the  ball  and  held  it,  in  spite  of 
the  efforts  of  the  men  to  shake  it  from  the  grasp  of  her 
uplifted  hand,  till  she  approached  the  goal,  near  enough  to 
throw  it  through  the  stakes. 


70  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

When  the  contending  parties  had  retired  from  the  strife, 
it  was  pleasant  to  see  the  exultation  expressed  in  the  faces 
of  the  victors,  whose  joy  was  manifestly  increased  by  the 
circumstance  that  the  victory  was  won  in  the  presence  of 
white  men,  whom  they  supposed  to  be  highly  distinguished 
and  honored  in  their  nation ;  a  conclusion  very  natural  for 
them  to  draw,  as  they  knew  the  business  on  which  their 
guests  were  journeying  to  Detroit.  The  party  spent  the 
night  very  pleasantly  in  the  village,  and  in  the  morning  re- 
sumed their  journey. 

On  their  outward  trip  they  took  the  route  by  Da}Tton, 
Piqua,  Loramie's,  St.  Mary's,  and  the  Ottawa  town,  on  the 
Auglaize,  and  from  thence  down  that  river,  to  Defiance; 
thence  to  the  foot  of  the  Rapids,  and  thence  by  River 
Raisin  to  Detroit;  but  on  their  return  from  Detroit,  they 
crossed  the  Maumee  river  at  Roche  de  Boeuf,  by  the  advice 
of  Black  Beard,  a  personal  friend  of  Judge  Symmes,  who 
lived  in  that  neighborhood,  and  with  whom  the  party* 
breakfasted.  As  a  matter  of  precaution,  they  hired  his  son 
to  accompany  them,  in  the  capacity  of  a  guide.  He  led 
them  through  a  succession  of  wet  prairies,  over  some  of 
which  it  was  impossible  to  ride,  and  it  was  with  great  diffi- 
culty they  were  able  to  lead,  or  drive  their  horses  through 
the  deep  mud  which  surrounded  them  on  all  sides.  After 
two  days  and  a  half  of  incessant  toil  and  difficulty,  they 
arrived  at  the  same  village  in  which  they  had  been  so 
kindly  treated,  and  so  much  amused,  on  their  outward  trip. 
To  their  great  mortification  and  disappointment,  they  were 
informed  that  Blue  Jacket  had  returned  from  Cincinnati  a 
day  or  two  before,  with  a  large  quantity  of  whiskey,  and 
that  his  people  were  in  a  high  frolick.  This  information 
was  soon  confirmed,  by  the  discovery,  that  the  whole  vil- 
lage, male  and  female,  were  drunk.  The  party,  however, 
were  received  with  great  kindness,  but  it  was  in  a  style 
they  were  not  disposed  to  permit. 

An   old  withered  looking  squaw,  very  drunk,  was  ex- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  7  1 

tremely  officious.  Knowing  that  Mr.  St.  Clair,  one  of  the 
party,  was  the  attorney  general  of  the  Territory,  and  son 
of  the  Governor,  her  attentions  were  principally  conferred 
upon  him — she  kissed  him,  and  exclaimed  "  You  big  man — 
Governor's  son,"  then  turning  to  the  rest  of  the  party,  said 
with  marked  contempt,  "  You  be  milish,"  and  then  kissed 
Mr.  St.  Clair  again.  It  was  certainly  one  of  those  rare 
occasions,  on  which  men  of  sensibility  and  delicacy,  feel 
the  advantage  of  being  placed  at  a  low  grade,  on  the 
scale  of  dignity. 

It  was  manifestly  impossible  to  remain  in  the  village, 
and  the  only  alternative  was  to  proceed  on  their  journey. 
It  was  then  late  in  the  afternoon;  they  were  much  fatigued, 
and  had  a  wet  swampy  path  of  twelve  miles  to  pass  over, 
to  the  St.  Mary's,  through  a  valley  swarming  with  gnats 
and  mosquitoes.  It  was  a  choice  of  evils ;  but  as  there  was 
no  room  to  hesitate,  they  saddled  their  horses  and  started. 
Night  overtook  them  in  the  middle  of  the  swamp.  There 
being  no  moon,  and  the  forest  very  dense,  it  was  found  im- 
possible to  keep  the  path,  much  less  to  see  and  avoid  the 
quagmires  on  every  side.  They  had  no  alternative,  and 
were  compelled  to  halt  till  morning.  To  lie  down  was 
impossible,  from  the  nature  of  the  ground;  and  to  sleep 
was  still  more  difficult,  as  they  were  surrounded  with 
gnats  and  mosquitoes.  After  remaining  in  that  uncom- 
fortable condition,  five  or  six  hours,  expecting  every  mo- 
ment their  horses  to  break  away,  day-light  made  its  ap- 
pearance for  their  relief.  About  sunrise  they  arrived  at 
the  old  fort,  Adams,  at  the  crossing  of  the  St.  Mary's, 
then  occupied  by  Charles  Murray  and  his  squaw,  where 
they  got  breakfast,  and  proceeded  on  their  way  to  Cin- 
cinnati. 

Journeys  of  a  similar  character  were  of  frequent  occur- 
rence during  the  continuance  of  the  Territorial  government, 
and  for  some  years  after.     But  it  is  not  proposed  to  detain 


72  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

the  reader  with  an  account  of  more  than  one  other  excur- 
sion of  that  character. 

In  December,  1799,  Mr.  St.  Clair  and  Mr.  Burnet  set  out 
on  a  trip  from  Cincinnati  to  Vincennes,  on  professional 
business.  Mr.  Morrison,  who  was  on  his  way  from  New- 
England  to  Kaskaskias,  with  a  view  of  establishing  himself 
on  the  Mississippi,  traveled  with  them.  They  purchased  a 
small  Kentucky  boat,  sometimes  called  an  ark,  in  which  they 
embarked  with  their  horses,  provisions,  etc.  In  the  after- 
noon of  the  fourth  day  they  arrived  at  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio, 
where  they  left  their  boat,  mounted  their  horses,  and  proceed- 
ed on  their  journey.  About  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening, 
they  discovered,  at  a  little  distance  from  the  path  they  were 
traveling,  a  camp  of  four  or  five  Indians,  which  they  ap- 
proached. After  having  shaken  hands  with  them,  they 
procured  a  brand  of  fire,  and  proceeded  some  distance  fur- 
ther on  their  way,  and  then  halted  for  the  night.  Having 
brushed  away  the  snow  from  the  spot  they  had  selected  for 
their  camp,  and  collected  a  good  supply  of  wood  for  the 
night,  they  kindled  a  fire,  took  some  refreshment,  wrapped 
themselves  in  their  blankets,  and  laid  down  to  sleep. 

The  next  night  they  encamped  in  a  rich  valley,  where 
they  found  an  abundance  of  fallen  timber,  which  enabled 
them  to  keep  up  a  large  fire  through  the  night,  before  which 
they  slept  very  comfortably  till  morning.  During  the  night, 
a  couple  of  panthers,  attracted  by  the  light  of  the  fire,  ap- 
proached sufficiently  near  the  camp,  to  serenade  them  with 
their  unwelcome  music — but  kept  at  a  respectful  distance. 
The  next  day,  they  encountered  a  severe  snow-storm,  dur- 
ing which  they  surprised  eight  or  ten  buffalo,  sheltering 
themselves  from  the  storm,  behind  the  top  of  a  beech  tree, 
full  of  dead  leaves,  which  had  fallen  by  the  side  of  the 
"  trace,"  and  hid  the  travelers  from  their  view.  The  tree 
and  the  noise  of  the  wind  among  its  leaves,  prevented  them 
from  discovering  the  party,  till  they  had  approached  within 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  73 

two  rods  of  the  place  where  they  stood.  They  then  took  to 
their  heels,  and  were  soon  out  of  sight.  One  of  the  com- 
pany drew  a  pistol  and  fired,  but  without  any  visible  effect. 

That  evening  they  reached  White  river,  where  they  found 
an  old  cabin  deserted  by  its  builder,  in  which  a  large  wild 
cat  had  taken  shelter,  and  seemed  disposed,  at  first,  to  vin- 
dicate his  right  of  possession.  He  was,  however,  soon 
ejected,  and  the  travelers  entered  and  occupied  the  prem- 
ises without  molestation,  during  the  night,  and  without  at- 
tempting to  do  personal  violence  or  injury  to  the  tenant 
they  had  dispossessed.  The  next  morning  they  arrived  at 
Post  Vincennes,  where  they  tarried  about  a  week.  In  the 
mean  time,  Mr.  Morrison  proceeded  westward.  As  soon 
as  Messrs.  S.  and  B.  had  closed  their  business,  they  set  out 
for  home,  having  abandoned  the  idea  of  engaging  in  the 
practice  of  law  in  that  county,  from  a  conviction  that  the 
profits  of  the  business  would  not  be  an  adequate  compen- 
sation for  the  fatigue  and  loss  of  time  to  which  it  would 
subject  them. 

Before  they  left  the  Post,  Colonel  Vigo — a  French  gen- 
tleman, who  had  been  an  Indian  trader  more  than  forty 
years,  (and  had  in  that  time  made  and  lost  one  or  two  for- 
tunes ;)  but  was  a  generous,  high  minded  man,  in  all  cir- 
cumstances— furnished  ample  stores  for  their  journey,  which 
he  constrained  them  to  accept,  including  a  complete  appa- 
ratus for  striking  and  kindling  fires.  No  occurrence  of  im- 
portance took  place  on  the  first  day.  The  second  brought 
a  snow-storm,  which  continued  through  the  day.  About 
noon  they  halted  to  feed  their  horses  and  partake  of  some 
refreshment.  The  snow  was  brushed  from  a  log  by  the 
side  of  the  "trace,"  on  which  they  sat  down  and  dined  sump- 
tuously on  a  frozen  chicken,  a  biscuit,  and  some  old  peach 
brandy,  put  up  for  them  by  their  hospitable  friend.  It  was 
their  calculation  when  they  left  Vincennes,  to  encamp  that 
night  on  Blue  river,  but  being  mistaken  as  to  the  distance, 
they  did  not  reach  the  place  till  several  hours  after  dark. 


74  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

The  weather  having  then  moderated,  it  commenced  rain- 
ing, and  the  rain  continued  to  fall  during  the  principal  part 
of  the  night. 

As  this  crossing  place  was  the  best  ford  on  the  river,  it 
had  been  the  common  encamping  ground  of  travelers,  be- 
tween the  Falls  and  Vincennes,  from  the  first  establish- 
ment of  the  Post,  in  the  year  1735,  and  as  a  matter  of 
course,  all  the  fuel  that  could  be  conveniently  obtained,  had 
been  used  up.  Nothing  remained  in  the  vicinity,  but  the 
larger  class  of  trees,  which  travelers,  after  a  tedious  day's 
journey,  were  not  disposed  to  encounter,  though  they  might 
have  the  means  of  felling  them.  After  rambling  through 
the  woods  in  the  snow,  which  was  six  or  eight  inches  deep, 
they  succeeded  in  gathering  some  dry  limbs  that  had 
recently  fallen,  which  they  carried  to  the  place  selected  for 
their  camp,  and  then  kindled  a  cheerful  little  fire,  sufficient 
to  boil  a  pot  of  coffee,  and  thaw  a  frozen  roast  chicken ;  but 
by  the  time  their  supper  was  finished,  their  stock  of  fuel 
was  exhausted,  and  their  fire  went  out.  Thus  situated, 
their  prospects  for  the  night  were  any  thing  but  cheering — 
the  ground  covered  with  snow,  the  rain  falling  plentifully, 
and  their  fire  extinguished. 

Determined,  however,  to  make  the  best  of  their  situation, 
they  scraped  away  the  snow,  and  with  their  coats  and 
blankets  wrapped  themselves  up  as  comfortably  as  they 
could,  and  laid  down  for  the  night.  Their  saddle-bags 
served  for  pillows,  and  their  saddles  were  so  placed  as  to 
shelter  their  heads.  In  that  manner  they  slept  as  comforta- 
bly as  circumstances  permitted,  till  morning.  When  they 
rose  from  their  beds  they  were  as  wet  as  they  could  have 
been  if  they  had  slept  in  the  bed  of  the  river.  Having  no 
fire,  they  made  a  cold  breakfast,  tempered  it  with  ^  little 
peach-brandy,  then  saddled  their  horses  and  started  for 
Louisville,  where  they  arrived  about  dark,  on  Christmas 
evening.  Being  very  much  fatigued,  they  partook  of  a 
good  supper  and  retired  to  comfortable  beds. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  75 

The  next  morning  they  rode  into  the  country  some  ten  or 
twelve  miles,  to  see,  and  pay  their  respects  to,  General 
George  Rogers  Clark,  who  then  lived  with  his  brother. 
They  were  received  with  kindness,  and  invited  to  spend 
the  day. 

At  that  time  the  exploits  of  General  Clark,  whose  mili- 
tary talents  were  of  a  high  order,  were  fresh  in  the  recol- 
lection of  the  country.  Early  in  the  Revolutionary  War, 
while  a  private  citizen,  holding  no  commission,  civil  or 
military,  he  distinguished  himself  by  his  efforts  to  protect 
the  frontier  settlements  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina, 
against  the  incursions  of  the  Indians. 

He  led  the  party  which  made  the  first  lodgement  at  the 
Falls  of  the  Ohio,  where  an  improvement  was  then  com- 
menced, from  which  the  splendid  city  of  Louisville  has 
grown  up.  He  was  the  leading  commissioner  in  negoti- 
ating a  treaty  between  the  United  States  and  the  chiefs 
and  warriors  of  the  Shawanee  nation,  including  a  part  of 
the  Delawares,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Miami,  in  January, 
1786,  by  which  the  United  States  were  acknowledged  to  be 
the  sole  and  absolute  sovereigns  of  all  the  territory  ceded 
by  the  treaty  of  peace  with  Great  Britain  in  1783. 

His  expedition  to  the  Mississippi  in  1778,  was  then  a 
part  of  the  unwritten  history  of  the  Revolution,  but  it  was 
universally  known,  and  justly  appreciated  in  the  West;  and 
it  gave  him  a  high  rank  among  the  military  men  of  his  day. 
When  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia  sent  him  a  Colonel's 
commission,  accompanied  with  a  warrant  to  raise  a  regi- 
ment of  volunteers,  and  for  that  purpose  to  make  contracts 
on  the  credit  of  the  State,  they  did  not  furnish  him  with 
funds  for  the  purpose,  but  left  him  to  procure  them,  in  the 
best  way  he  could ;  either  on  their  creditor  on  his  own. 
Yet  such  was  his  perseverance,  and  so  unbounded  was  his 
confidence  in  the  honor  of  Ins  native  State,  and  such  was 
his  influence  with  the  people  of  the  West,  who  knew  his 
bravery  and  his  military  talents,  that  he  soon  raised  a  regi- 


76  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ment  of  hardy  Kentuckians,  whom  he  inspired  with  his  own 
spirit,  and  having  attached  them  warmly  to  his  person,  led 
them  to  the  Mississippi,  and  captured  the  posts  at  Kaskas- 
kias  and  Cahokia.  The  inhabitants  of  those  villages,  on 
receiving  a  promise  of  protection,  declared  allegiance  to  the 
United  States.  At  that  time,  Governor  Hamilton  was  at 
Fort  Vincennes,  making  his  arrangements  to  capture  Clark 
and  his  band  of  heroes,  which  he  expected  to  accomplish, 
with  but  little  difficulty.  Clark,  however,  was  aware  of 
the  Governor's  purpose,  and  also  of  the  danger  of  his  own 
situation,  and  determined  to  anticipate  his  enemy.  Having 
left  a  sufficient  number  of  men  to  ensure  the  safety  of  the 
conquests  he  had  already  made,  he  proceeded  with  the 
residue  by  a  forced  march  through  swamps  and  quagmires 
to  the  Wabash,  where  he  arrived,  without  the  loss  of  a 
man,  though  the  country  was  so  flooded,  that  they  were 
sometimes  compelled  to  swim.  The  advance  of  the  troops 
was  so  arranged,  as  to  bring  them  to  the  village,  before  the 
dawn  of  day,  and  before  the  Governor  was  advised  of  their 
movement  from  the  Mississippi.  The  consequence  was, 
the  post  was  carried  by  storm,  and  the  Governor  and  his 
troops  made  prisoners  of  war.1 

(1)  Col.  John  Paul,  late  of  Madison,  Indiana,  who  served  as  a  volunteer  in 
the  expedition  to  the  Mississippi  and  the  Wabash,  under  the  command  of  Gen. 
Clark,  at  that  time  a  colonel  in  the  service  of  Virginia,  stated  in  frequent  con- 
versations with  the  writer  of  this  narrative  :  that  the  colonel  embarked  with  his 
regiment  at  the  Falls,  and  descended  the  Ohio  to  some  point,  not  far  from  the 
mouth  of  the  Wabash;  where  he  landed  a  part  of  his  men,  and,  having  ordered 
the  residue  to  proceed  with  the  boats,  baggage,  etc.  to  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio, 
and  thence  to  Kaskaskias,  proceeded  across  the  country  by  the  most  direct 
route,  to  the  same  place.  When  he  arrived  in  sight  of  the  village,  the  inha- 
bitants were  as  much  surprised,  as  if  they  had  seen  him  descend  from  the 
clouds.  As  the  provisions  brought  in  the  knapsacks  of  his  men  were  nearly 
exhausted,  and  many  days  must  elapse  before  the  arrival  of  his  boats,  he  was 
admonished  to  act  promptly  and  without  delay. 

For  the  purpose  of  magnifying  his  force,  in  the  estimation  of  the  town  and 
garrison,  as  soon  as  he  came  in  sight,  he  ordered  his  men  to  march  in  such  a 
circuitous  manner,  that  the  formation  of  the  intervening  ground  led  the  en- 
emy to  see  and  count  them  twice  or  thrice,  without  discovering  the  deception. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  77 

That  expedition  was  not  excelled  in  difficulty  and  Buffer- 
ing, or  in  daring  courage,  by  the  memorable  march  of 
Arnold,  to  Quebec,  in  1775. 

General  Clark  succeeded  in  retaining  military  possession 
of  that  extensive  country  till  the  close  of  the  war,  and  by 
that  means  secured  it  to  the  United  States.  The  fact  is 
well  known,  that  in  arranging  the  articles  of  the  treaty  of 
peace,  at  Paris,  the  British  commissioners  insisted  on  the 
Ohio  river,  as  part  of  the  northern  boundary  of  the  United 
States ;  and  that  the  Count  de  Vergennes  favored  that  claim. 
It  appears  also  from  the  diplomatic  correspondence  on  that 
subject,  that  the  only  tenable  ground,  on  which  the  Ameri- 
can commissioners  relied,  to  sustain  their  claim  to  the 
Lakes,  as  the  boundary,  was  the  fact,  that  General  Clark 
had  conquered  the  country,  and  was  in  the  undisputed 
military  possession  of  it  at  the  time  of  the  negotiation. 
That  fact  was  affirmed  and  admitted,  and  was  the  chief 
ground  on  which  the  British  commissioners  reluctantly 
abandoned  their  claim. 


He  then  halted,  and  with  a  part  of  his  men  and  a  flag,  advanced  to  the  fort, 
and  demanded  an  immediate  surrender  on  the  penalty  of  receiving  no  quarter, 
in  case  of  a  refusal.  The  inhabitants  at  once  submitted.  The  commandant 
of  the  post,  in  the  surprise  of  the  moment,  followed  the  example,  and  surren- 
dered the  garrison  prisoners  of  war,  without  firing  a  gun.  The  Colonel  then 
proceeded  to  Cahokia,  about  thirty  miles  north,  and  with  but  little  difficulty 
obtained  a  surrender  of  the  fort  and  garrison  at  that  place;  the  inhabitants  of 
both  villages  being  predisposed  to  submit,  and  declare  allegiance  to  the  United 
States. 

These  conquests  were  achieved  before  the  arrival  of  the  boats,  and  were  im- 
mediately made  known  to  Governor  Hamilton,  at  Vincennes,  by  some  friend 
of  the  enemy,  who  stated  at  the  same  time  the  diminutive  force  by  which  the 
object  was  accomplished.  The  Governor  immediately  projected  a  plan  to  sur- 
prise the  Americans,  and  retake  the  posts.  In  the  mean  time  the  boats  arrived 
with  the  residue  of  the  regiment ;  when  Clark,  leaving  a  sufficient  number  of 
men  to  retain  the  posts  he  had  captured,  marched  without  loss  of  time  to  Vin- 
cennes. Having  waded  through  mud  and  water  for  several  days,  he  ap- 
proached the  low  ground  on  the  Wabash  river,  which  was  so  flooded  that  his 
men  were  frequently  up  to  their  arm-pits  in  water.  Yet  they  were  not  dis- 
heartened, nor  did  their  devotion  to  their  heroic  leader  in  the  least  degree 
abate. 


78  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

It  is  a  fact  of  importance  in  estimating  the  character  and 
claims  of  General  Clark,  on  the  American  people,  that  the 
Legislature  of  Virginia  did  not  furnish  him  with  money  or 
other  means  to  accomplish  the  service  they  had  appointed 
him  to  perform.  They  merely  sent  him  a  commission,  ac- 
companied with  power  to  recruit  men,  and  make  contracts 
obligatory  on  the  State.  But  the  State  having  no  credit,  he 
was  cast  on  his  own  energy,  and  relied  on  his  own  personal 
efforts  to  raise  and  equip  his  troops,  and  to  feed  and  clothe 
them  during  the  time  of  their  service,  which  continued  to 
the  end  of  the  war.  The  task  he  undertook  was  a  hercu- 
lean one.  There  were  but  very  few  who  could  have  ac- 
complished it;  and  nothing  but  the  most  ardent  attachment 
to  his  country,  could  have  prompted  him  to  undertake  it, 
and  to  persevere  as  he  did. 

Patriotism,  and  a  laudable  desire  of  military  fame,  were 
the  governing  influences  of  his  mind.     They  led  him  to  in- 
cur great  hazards,  and  enabled  him  to  accomplish  much. 
During  his  campaign — and  in  fact  from  the  day  he  be- 
gan to  recruit  his  regiment  till  he  had  taken  Post  Vin- 
cennes  by  storm,  and  captured  the  garrison  with  the  British 
Governor — he  had  no  time  to  reflect  on  consequences.     His 
troops  were  subsisted  on  a  scanty  allowance,  such  as  they 
were  able  to  carry  on  their  backs  on  a  rapid  march.     But 
when  the  campaign  was  over,  and  his  mind  became  occu- 
pied in  devising  means  for  the  future  subsistence  of  his 
troops,  and  to  retain  the  posts  he  had  taken,  he  discovered 
his  situation  to  be  apparently  hopeless ;  but  despair  formed 
no  part  of  his  character — it  was  a  feeling  he  had  never  in- 
dulged— and  he  resolved  to  assume  the  responsibility  of  sus- 
taining his  regiment,  and  holding  the  posts  in  his  possession 
be  the  consequences  what  they  might.  He  held  in  his  hands 
conclusive  evidence  that  the  Legislature  of  Virginia  had 
authorised  him  to  raise  the  regiment,  and  to  enter  into  such 
contracts  as  should  be  necessary  to  carry  the  projected  plan 
into  operation. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  ?9 

On  the  credit  of  that  document,  he  was  enabled  for  some 
time  to  raise  supplies  of  provision,  clothing,  etc.  for  the  sus- 
tenance and  comfort  of  his  troops,  for  which  he  drew  on  the 
Commonwealth,  in  favor  of  the  persons  who  had  furnished 
the  supplies  ;  his  drafts  being  accompanied  with  such  vouch- 
ers as  are  usually  furnished  on  similar  occasions.  To  his 
astonishment,  and  the  surprise  of  all  who  knew  the  facts, 
those  drafts  were  dishonored,  for  such  reasons  as  could  not 
but  wound  the  feelings  of  the  gallant  chief  who  had  drawn 
them.  But  yet,  even  this  did  not  shake  his  purpose,  or  in- 
duce him,  for  a  moment,  to  hesitate  in  carrying  out  his  de- 
termination to  preserve  the  conquests  he  had  made  ;  most 
probably  without  thinking  of  the  inestimable  benefits  which 
the  nation  would  derive  from  them  in  the  future  adjustment 
of  her  northern  boundary. 

One  might  have  supposed  that  the  rude  imputation  con- 
veyed in  the  deliberate  act  of  dishonoring  his  drafts,  in  fa- 
vor of  persons  who  had  advanced  for  the  support  of  his  re- 
giment, almost  every  thing  they  were  worth,  would  have 
disgusted  and  driven  him  from  the  service  of  his  country ; 
but  such  was  not  the  fact.  As  his  difficulties  multiplied,  his 
resolution  gained  strength,  and  when  his  credit  failed,  and 
he  was  cut  off  from  every  other  resource,  he  resolved  to  sus- 
tain his  troops,  and  preserve  his  conquests,  by  the  strong 
arm  of  power. 

After  weighing  the  consequences  both  to  himself  and  his 
country,  he  resorted  to  forced  loans,  and  by  that  hazardous 
expedient,  accomplished  the  object  nearest  his  heart,  which 
was  the  preservation  of  his  conquests  till  the  close  of  the 
war.  But  before  he  proceeded  to  that  extremity,  he  made 
an  appeal  to  the  judgment  and  feelings  of  the  citizens  of 
Vincennes,  and  the  settlements  on  the  Mississippi,  stating 
his  determination,  and  the  considerations  which  had  induced 
him  to  adopt  it.  He  took  it  for  granted,  that  as  they  had 
given  in  their  adhesion,  and  had  declared  allegiance  to  the 
United  States,  he  had  a  right  to  expect  from  them  the  as- 


80  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

sistance  he  needed.  That  appeal  having  failed  to  produce 
the  desired  effect,  he  issued  an  order,  as  commandant  of  the 
regiment,  directed  to  some  two  or  three  of  his  officers,  com- 
manding them  to  enter  on  the  premises  of  the  persons  de- 
signated in  the  order,  sequester  the  property  there  found, 
and  remove  it  to  the  public  store,  for  the  exclusive  use  of 
the  troops.  They  were  also  ordered  to  cause  exact  inven- 
tories to  be  made  of  every  article  so  taken,  with  its  fair 
value  annexed,  by  impartial  citizens  of  the  place,  certified 
copies  of  which  were  furnished  to  the  owners  of  the  goods, 
accompanied  by  the  certificate  of  the  commandant  that  all 
the  property  specified  in  the  inventory,  had  been  taken  and 
appropriated  to  the  sole  and  exclusive  use  of  the  troops 
under  his  command,  and  was  to  be  paid  for  by  the  Common- 
wealth of  Virginia. 

By  that  expedient,  and  that  alone,  he  was  enabled  to 
maintain  the  posts  he  had  conquered  on  the  Mississippi  and 
the  Wabash,  till  the  termination  of  the  war ;  by  which  he 
saved  to  the  nation  the  vast  territory  lying  between  the 
Ohio  river  and  the  lakes. 

Colonel  Vigo  was  one  of  the  persons  who  voluntarily  sur- 
rendered his  property  for  the  support  of  the  regiment,  and 
received  a  draft  on  Virginia  for  the  amount,  which  was  dis- 
honored. That  noble  hearted  man  lived  many  years  after- 
wards in  comparative  poverty,  and  died  almost  a  pauper, 
holding  the  same  protested  draft  in  his  possession ;  on 
which  there  must  have  been  due,  at  his  death,  at  least 
twenty  thousand  dollars.  Since  his  death  the  government 
of  Virginia  has  acknowledged  the  justice  of  the  claim,  by 
a  solemn  act  of  the  Legislature,  and  has  furnished  evi- 
dence to  prove  that  it  is  one  of  the  liabilities,  assumed  by 
the  General  Government,  in  consideration  of  the  act  cf  ces- 
sion— but  there  it  rests,  no  part  of  the  debt  having  been 
paid. 

The  persons  whose  property  was  taken  by  force,  com- 
menced suits,  and  obtained  judgments  against  the  General, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  81 

in  the  courts  of  the  Territory,  on  which  portions  of  his  pro- 
perty were  attached  and  sold. 

After  the  close  of  the  war,  the  Legislature  of  Virginia 
made  an  appropriation  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand 
acres  of  land,  lying  on  the  Ohio  river,  opposite  to  Louis- 
ville, for  the  use  of  the  officers  and  soldiers  of  that  regi- 
ment-which,  at  that  day  was  of  but  little  value,  and  was 
disposed  of  at  nominal  prices.  The  tract  was  known  by 
the  name  of  «  Clark's  Grant,"  and  was  the  only  remunera- 
tion received  by  that  gallant  corps,  for  their  services  and 
sufferings  in  conquering  and  securing  the  entire  North-wes- 
tern Territory. 

Thus  it  appears  that  one  of  the  most  distinguished  offi- 
cers of  the  Revolution,  who  had  performed  services  of 
incalculable  importance,  was  not  only  treated  with  cold 
neglect,  but  was  subjected  to  the  payment  of  debts  and 
claims,  incurred  for  the  support  of  his  troops,  to  a  very 
large  amount. 

The  cruel  ingratitude  to  which  this  distinguished  soldier 
was  doomed-for  which  no  justifiable  cause  can  be  as- 
signed—and the  comparative  poverty,  which  made  him  al- 
most a  pensioner  on  the  bounty  of  his  relatives,  was  more 
than  he  could  bear.  It  drove  him  to  intemperance.  He 
sought  the  inebriating  bowl,  as  if  it  contained  the  water  of 
Lethe,  and  could  obliterate  from  his  memory  the  wrongs  he 
had  endured. 

When  called  on  by  the  gentlemen  mentioned  above,  who 
were  induced  to  make  their  visit  by  the  veneration  they  en- 
tertained for  his  military  talents  and  services,  his  health 
was  much  impaired;  but  his  majestic  person,  strong  fea- 
tures, and  dignified  deportment,  gave  evidence  of  an  intel- 
ligent, resolute  mind.     He  had  the  appearance  of  a  man 
born  to   command,   and  fitted  by  nature  for  his  destiny. 
There  was  a  gravity  and  solemnity  in  his  demeanor,  resem- 
bling that  which  so  eminently  distinguished  «  the  venerated 
father  of  his  country." 
6 


82  BURNET'S  NOTES. 

A  person  familiar  with  the  lives  and  character  of  the  mil- 
itary veterans  of  Rome,  in  the  days  of  her  greatest  power, 
might  readily  have  selected  this  remarkable  man,  as  a  speci- 
men of  the  model  he  had  formed  of  them,  in  his  own  mind; 
but  he  was  rapidly  falling  a  victim  to  his  extreme  sensi- 
bility, and  to  the  ingratitude  of  his  native  state,  under 
whose  banner  he  had  fought  bravely  and  with  great  suc- 
cess. 

The  time  will  certainly  come  when  the  enlightened  and 
magnanimous  citizens  of  Louisville,  will  remember  the 
debt  of  gratitude  they  owe  the  memory  of  that  distin- 
guished man.  He  was  the  leader  of  the  pioneers  who 
made  the  first  lodgment  on  the  site  now  covered  by  their 
rich  and  splendid  city.  He  was  its  protector  during  the 
years  of  its  infancy,  and  in  the  period  of  its  greatest  dan- 
ger. Yet  the  traveler  who  has  read  of  his  achievements — 
admired  his  character — and  visited  the  theatre  of  his  bril- 
liant deeds,  discovers  nothing  indicating  the  place  where 
his  remains  are  deposited,  and  where  he  can  go  and  pay 
a  tribute  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  the  departed  and 
gallant  hero. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

Indian  depredations  and  murders. — Alarm  in  the  Frontier  Settlements. — 
Letter  of  Judge  Innes  to  the  President. — Other  letters  of  a  similar  character. 
— Strong  hold  of  the  Indians  on  the  Ohio,  near  the  Scioto  river. — Inatten- 
tion of  the  Government  complained  of. — Expedition  of  Gen.  Scott. — In- 
dian depredations  continued. — Communication  from  Gov.  St.  Clair  to  the 
commandant  at  Detroit. — Unsuccessful  embassy  of  M.  Gameline,  to  the  In- 
dians.— Increase  of  the  military  force. — Arrival  of  troops  at  Fort  Washing- 
ton.— Inefficient  character  of  the  Militia. — Harmar's  campaign. — Its  suc- 
cess.— And  subsequent  disasters,  denominated  a  defeat. — Acquitted  by  Report 
of  Board  of  Inquiry. — Murder  of  Hardin  and  Trueman. — Observations  on 
the  Campaign. — List  of  officers  killed. 

In  March,  1790,  General  Harmar  informed  the  Secretary 
of  War,  that  the  Indians  continued  to  murder  and  plunder 
the  inhabitants,  and  to  intercept  almost  every  boat  that 
attempted  to  pass  up  or  down  the  Ohio  river.  About  the 
beginning  of  that  month,  they  broke  up  Kenton's  station,  a 
few  miles  from  Limestone,  where  they  killed  ten  or  twelve 
individuals.  During  the  same  month,  three  boats  descend- 
ing the  river  in  company,  saw  a  boat  lying  at  the  Indian 
shore,  a  short  distance  above  the  Scioto  river,  containing  a 
large  party  of  Indians.  The  descending  boats  were,  fortu- 
nately, near  the  Virginia  shore  when  the  enemy  were  dis- 
covered. On  coming  opposite  to  them,  a  white  man, 
standing  at  the  edge  of  the  water,  called,  and  begged  them 
to  surrender,  affirming,  as  the  fact  was,  that  the  Indians 
were  fifty  or  sixty  in  number,  and  that  if  resistance  should 
be  made,  the  whole  party  would  be  murdered. 

The  proposition  was  rejected,  of  course,  on  which  the 
Indians  commenced  a  heavy  fire,  which  was  continued 
for   some  time,  without   effect,  but  which  gave    the   de- 


84  BURNET'S  NOETS  ON  THE 

scending  boats  time  to  pass  them.  The  savages,  failing 
to  bring  them  to,  commenced  a  pursuit;  and  the  Ameri- 
cans, finding  they  could  not  save  all  their  boats,  selected 
the  strongest,  and  abandoned  the  others,  winch  contained 
a  number  of  horses,  and  much  valuable  property.  Holes 
were  cut  in  the  sides  of  the  boat  they  selected,  to  enable 
them  to  increase  the  number  of  rowers.  The  Indians  pur- 
sued with  great  effort,  some  six  or  eight  miles,  when  they 
gave  up  the  chase,  and  the  Americans  arrived  at  Limestone? 
without  further  molestation.  They  lost  twenty-eight  hor- 
ses, and  merchandise  valued  at  £1500,  which  were  left  in 
the  abandoned  boats. 

Buckner  Thruston,  then  a  member  of  the  Virginia  legis- 
lature, was  one  of  the  party,  and  reported  the  facts  to 
General  Harmar.  The  party  consisted  of  twenty-eight 
men,  a  family  of  females,  and  some  negro  women  and 
children.  The  Indians  numbered  about  sixty,  and  it  was 
afterwards  ascertained  that  the  boat  in  their  possession  had 
been  captured  by  them  a  day  or  two  before — that  it  be- 
longed to  John  May,  who,  with  four  others,  were  made 
prisoners — not  one  of  whom  escaped,  to  tell  their  fate.  It 
is  presumable,  however,  that  the  person  who  hailed  the 
boats  of  Mr.  Thruston,  was  one  of  the  unfortunate  captives. 

It  appears  from  a  note  written  by  Governor  St.  Clair, 
that  in  January  1790,  the  Indians  killed  three  men  within 
twelve  miles  of  Danville,  and  three  others  at  Carpenter's 
Station,  and  that  they  broke  up  the  settlement  at  Russel's 
creek,  about  forty  miles  from  that  place. 

About  the  same  time,  a  party  who  had  been  out  on  a 
hunt,  about  six  miles  below  Limestone,  were  fired  on  by 
the  Indians,  and  one  of  them  killed.  It  so  happened}  that 
Major  Doughty  was  then  passing  down  the  river,  with  a 
detachment  of  droops,  destined  lor  Cincinnati,  who,  on  hear- 
ing the  firing,  landed,  and  pursued  the  enemy  Borne  distance, 
but  without  success.    Judge  limes,  writing  from  Danville, 

on   the    thirteenth    of  March,    1790,   reported,   that    in    the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  85 

month  of  January,  a  boat  having  ten  or  twelve  persons  on 
board,  one  of  them  a  woman,  was  captured  about  fifteen 
miles  above  Limestone,  and  that  the  boat  was  afterwards 
found,  containing  nine  dead  bodies,  the  woman  being  miss- 
ing. During  that  murderous  tragedy,  a  boy,  who  had  been 
taken  prisoner  up  Licking,  when  on  a  hunting  excursion 
with  two  men,  who  were  killed,  made  his  escape,  and  came 
in  with  the  information. 

About  the  same  time,  three  men  were  killed  on  the  road 
from  Richland  to  Sinking  creek.  Old  Mr.  Sloan  and  his 
son,  were  killed  on  the  head  of  Rolling  fork,  and  one  man 
was  killed  on  Holin  creek.  A  station  on  Russel's  creek 
was  attacked,  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  the  same  month,  when 
Isaac  Farris  and  his  son,  and  John  Painter,  with  another 
person,  whose  name  was  not  mentioned,  were  killed.  On 
the  same  occasion,  a  white  woman  and  a  negro  woman 
were  wounded,  and  a  number  of  horses  carried  off.  Soon 
after,  a  man  by  the  name  of  Harper,  was  killed  on  Slate 
creek.  In  addition  to  these  murders,  only  two  others  were 
reported  on  the  Rolling  fork,  during  that  month, — one  was 
of  a  man,  the  other  of  a  woman; — but  the  information 
received  from  various  quarters,  indicated  very  hostile  move- 
ments in  the  approaching  spring. 

A  letter  addressed  to  the  Hon.  John  Brown,  dated  April 
4th,  1790,  stated  that  the  Indians  had  made  great  havoc  on 
the  Ohio ;  that  about  fifty  of  them  were  encamped  near  the 
mouth  of  the  Scioto;  and  that  among  other  depredations,  they 
had  captured  a  periogue,  having  six  men  on  board,  who 
were  ascending  the  river  from  Limestone,  whom  they  put 
to  death.  They  had  also  captured  the  boat  of  John  May, 
who  was  on  board,  with  a  crew  of  three  or  four  men,  all  of 
whom  were  put  to  death.  About  the  same  time,  two  other 
boats  were  taken, — one  of  them  belonging  to  emigrating 
families, — the  other  being  the  property  of  Thomas  Marshall, 
and  others.     The  fate  of  the  unfortunate  captives  in  those 


g6  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

two  boats,  was  not  mentioned,  but  may  be  readily  con- 
jectured. 

On  another  occasion,  the  Indians  concealed  themselves, 
and  sent  a  white  prisoner  to  the  edge  of  the  water  to  hail 
a  descending  boat,  and  entreat  those  on  board  to  come  to, 
and  take  him  in,  affirming  that  he  had  made  his  escape 
from  the  savages,  and  was  in  danger  of  perishing.  The 
stratagem  was  suspected,  and  of  course  did  not  succeed. 
At  the  same  time  information  was  received  of  the  taking 
of  a  boat  on  Salt  river,  and  of  the  murder  of  the  crew, 
consisting  of  John  Prior  and  two  others,  whose  names 
were  not  given. 

In  May  following,  ensign  Hartshorne,  of  the  United 
States'  army,  descended  the  river  with  several  boats,  and 
landed  in  the  evening  about  nine  miles  above  Limestone. 
At  midnight  they  were  attacked  with  great  fury,  and  one 
of  the  boats  taken.  The  night  being  very  dark,  and  the 
commandant's  boat  being  hard  pressed,  he  ordered  them 
all  to  put  off,  and  make  the  best  of  their  way  to  Limestone, 
assuring  them  that  the  force  of  his  boat  would  keep  the 
enemy  in  check.  The  order  was  obeyed,  and  at  three 
o'clock  in  the  morning  they  reached  Limestone.  In  the 
afternoon,  a  party  went  up  to  the  place  where  the  attack 
had  been  made.  The  savages  had  gone,  but  they  found 
one  man,  one  woman,  and  three  children  killed  and 
scalped,  whose  remains  they  conveyed  to  Limestone.  The 
entire  loss  during  the  attack,  was  reported  to  be  thirteen 
killed  and  missing. 

During  the  same  season,  a  small  party  of  Indians  con- 
cealed near  a  path,  leading  from  Cincinnati  to  Colombia, 
discovered  a  canoe  passing  up,  near  the  Indian  shore,  con- 
taining two  men,  a  boy  and  a  woman.  They  attacked  the 
canoe,  killed  the  adults,  and  took  the  boy  prisoner.  lie 
was  the  only  son  of  Colonel  Spencer,  of  Colombia,  who 
had  been   a  brave,  gallant  officer    in    the    Revolutionary 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  87 

army.  The  lad  was  taken  to  a  town  on  the  head  waters 
of  the  Big  Miami,  and  adopted  into  an  Indian  family,  in 
which  he  lived  two  or  three  years.  President  Washing- 
ton, who  entertained  a  great  regard  for  Colonel  Spencer, 
through  the  instrumentality  of  the  British  minister,  and  the 
commandant  at  Detroit,  procured  the  ransom  of  the  lad, 
and  restored  him  to  his  parents. 

It  was  stated  in  a  letter  from  Judge  Innes,  that  on  the 
13th  of  May,  1790,  the  Indians  killed  two  white  men,  two 
girls,  and  two  negroes,  in  Jefferson  county,  and  at  the  same 
time  scalped  one  woman,  and  made  prisoner  of  another. 

The  Lieutenant  of  the  same  county  reported  the  wound- 
ing of  a  man  near  Hite's  plantation,  and  spoke  of  it  as  the 
last  of  many  depredations  committed  in  that  county.     On 
the  28th  of  May,  certificates  were  sent  to   Judge   Innes, 
from  several  persons,  stating,  that  the  Indians  had  made 
prisoners  of  two  young  men,  and  a  negro  woman,  on  Bra- 
shear's  creek;  that  they  had  killed  two  young  men  found  at 
work  in  a  field  on  Tick  creek;  that  they  had  captured  two 
boys  belonging  to  Loudon's  Station,  on  the  head  of  Dren- 
non's  creek;  that  a  party  of  Indians,  on  the  23d  of  May,  had 
fired  on  a  company  of  people  on  Clear  creek,  as  they  were 
returning  from  meeting,  on  which  occasion  they  killed  one 
man,  and  took  a  young  woman  prisoner,  whom  they  carried 
about  ten  miles,   and  then  tomahawked  and  scalped  her ; 
and  that  a  party  was  sent  out  in  pursuit,  which  recovered 
the  mangled  bodies  and  brought  them  into  the  settlement. 

On  the  12th  of  the  same  month,  John  Caldwell,  of  Nelson 
county,  reported  to  Judge  Innes,  that  on  the  preceding 
Thursday,  ten  or  eleven  Indians  attacked  the  house  of 
Miles  Hart,  on  Valley  creek;  that  they  murdered  him— 
captured  his  wife  and  two  children,  who  constituted  the 
whole  of  his  family,  and  carried  them  off,  with  such  of  his 
property  as  they  could  conveniently  take  with  them. 

Christopher  Greenock,  on  the  24th  of  May,  certified  that 
the  Indians  had  stolen  four  horses  from  Mr.  Meaux,  who 


88  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

lived  very  far  in  the  interior.  On  the  4th  of  June,  it  was 
certified  to  Judge  Innes,  that  the  Indians  came  to  the 
Rolling  fork,  and  stole  sixteen  horses ;  that  they  were  pur- 
sued by  Captain  Wilson,  at  the  head  of  a  small  party,  who 
came  up  with  them,  but  the  Captain  being  killed,  the  party 
was  overpowered  and  obliged  to  retreat. 

On  the  13th  of  May,  Robert  Johnson  sent  depositions  to 
Judge  Innes,  stating  the  murder  of  Mr.  McBride  and  Mr. 
McConnell,  in  April  preceding;  also,  that  a  son  of  Mr. 
Tanner,  residing  on  the  Ohio  river,  near  the  Big  Miami, 
had  been  taken  prisoner;  and  that  in  the  fall  preceding, 
two  men  wrere  killed — one  of  them  a  Mr.  Brown,  whose 
wife  and  children  were  then  living  in  Lexington.  It  was 
stated  by  one  of  the  deponents  that  he  was  with  the  party 
which  brought  in  the  body. 

The  same  depositions  recited  the  particulars  of  an  incur- 
sion by  another  party  of  Indians  in  the  preceding  winter, 
who,  among  other  depredations,  stole  a  large  number  of 
horses.  On  the  12th  of  the  same  month,  John  Garnet,  in  a 
deposition  taken  before  R.  Johnston,  a  magistrate,  in  Wood- 
ford county,  stated  that  he  was  at  Tanner's  Station,  on  the 
Ohio,  about  five  miles  below  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Miami, 
in  the  latter  part  of  April,  or  beginning  of  May,  when  five 
Indians  placed  themselves  in  ambush,  between  the  cabin  of 
Mr.  Tanner  and  his  field,  and  captured  his  son,  a  lad  about 
nine  years  old,  with  whom  they  crossed  the  Ohio. 

On  the  same  day,  the  deposition  of  S.  Stephenson  was 
taken,  before  the  same  magistrate,  stating,  that  in  April, 
1790,  he  was  one  of  the  party  who  went  out  and  brought  in 
the  bodies  of  James  McBride  and  Mr.  McConnell,  killed  on 
the  path  from  Elkhorn  to  licking;  that  they  had  both  been 
scalped.  One  of  them  was  very  much  cut  with  a  toma- 
hawk, and  the  other  was  shot  through  the  hips. 

The  depositions  of  Rankin  and  Hays,  taken  in  Bourbon 

county,  state  that  on  the  12th  of  May,  Lewis  Parker  was 
murdered  while  engaged  at  his  work;    that  he  was  found 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  89 

about  an  hour  after  he  had  been  killed,  and  that  he  had 
received  many  wounds  from  bullets,  tomahawks,  and  knives, 
and  that  he  had  been  scalped. 

Benjamin  Harrison  certifies  that  Parker  was  killed  at  the 
house  of  Michael  Hogg,  near  his  own  residence,  and  that 
he  followed  the  trail  of  the  party,  who  committed  the  mur- 
der, nearly  ten  miles,  in  the  direction  of  Big  Bone  Lick. 
He  also  certified  that  the  Indians  had  recently  stolen  two 
horses  from  Mr.  Coleman. 

On  the  12th  day  of  May,  the  Lieutenant  of  Bourbon 
county  informed  Judge  Innes,  that  since  his  last  letter,  a 
man  had  been  killed  by  a  party  of  Indians  in  his  corn-field, 
on  the  preceding  Thursday;  and  also,  that  a  boat  had  been 
taken  above  Limestone,  containing  five  or  six  persons,  who 
were  left  murdered  on  the  shore;  and  he  expressed  it  as 
his  opinion,  that  no  greater  proof  need  be  required,  of  the 
intention  of  the  savages  to  destroy  the  American  settle- 
ments. 

The  Lieutenant  of  Mason  county  reported,  on  the  16th 
of  May,  that  on  the  night  of  the  11th,  a  party  of  Indians 
made  an  attack  on  four  boats  above  Limestone ;  that  three  of 
the  number  escaped,  but  that  the  fourth,  containing  sixteen 
souls,  was  taken;  five  of  whom  were  killed  and  mangled 
in  a  horrible  manner;  three  made  their  escape,  leaving  the 
remaining  eight  in  the  hands  of  the  Indians.  In  the  same 
report,  it  was  stated,  that  the  trail  of  a  party  of  Indians, 
supposed  to  be  about  fifteen,  was  discovered  on  the  15th  of 
the  same  month,  which  crossed  the  river  near  the  lower  set- 
tlements of  Mason  county,  in  a  direction  towards  the  Blue 
Licks.  It  was  also  stated  by  the  Lieutenant,  that  these  and 
similar  depredations  had  greatly  excited  the  people,  and  that 
the  surveyors  and  hunters  had  all  retired  from  the  woods. 

On  the  14th  of  the  same  month,  a  party  of  white  men 
was  attacked  and  defeated  below  Ingles'  Station,  six  of 
whom  were  missing  and  supposed  to  have  been  killed. 
Their  horses  and  other  property  fell  into  the  enemy's  hands. 


90  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

In  addition  to  these  depredations,  committed  in  the  fatal 
month  of  May,  1790,  an  attack  was  made  on  a  party  of 
white  men,  in  Madison  county,  forty  miles  beyond  the  set- 
tlements; in  which  the  Indians  killed  four,  and  wounded 
two  men,  and  captured  ten  or  twelve  horses,  with  other 
valuable  property. 

On  the  evening  of  the  18th  of  April,  in  Nelson  county, 
the  Indians  fell  on  a  party  of  men,  women,  and  children, 
returning  from  a  religious  meeting  on  Rough  creek;  they 
killed  a  girl  of  twelve,  and  a  boy  of  eight  years  of  age, 
and  wounded  an  elderly  woman  severely  in  the  head,  back, 
and  arms,  and  having  taken  her  scalp,  left  her  alive  on  the 
ground;  they  also  captured  a  daughter  of  J.  Barnet, 
eleven  years  old,  and  carried  her  into  captivity.  A  party 
soon  collected  and  went  in  pursuit  of  the  savages,  but 
night  coming  on,  they  were  not  able  to  overtake  them. 

These  frequent,  predatory  movements  of  the  savages, 
following  in  such  rapid  succession,  produced  universal 
alarm  throughout  the  country;  and  the  settlers  began  to 
think  they  would  be  compelled  to  abandon  it.  They  had 
given  up  all  the  conveniencies  and  comforts  of  civilized 
life,  to  which  they  had  been  accustomed;  which,  in  their 
opinion,  was  an  ample  consideration  for  any  and  every 
advantage,  anticipated  from  their  change  of  location. 
But  when,  in  addition  to  this,  life  was  in  perpetual  danger, 
there  could  be  no  motive  inducing  them  to  continue  in 
such  a  state  of  imminent  exposure. 

Men  of  influence  and  reflection,  in  every  part  of  the  fron- 
tier country,  saw  and  felt,  that  vigorous  and  immediate 
measures  were  necessary,  to  save  the  American  settlement.- 
from  being  deserted  by  their  inhabitants,  or  broken  up  and 
laid  waste  by  the  savage*. 

The  tardy  movements  of  the  general  government,  were 
criticised  with  great  severity;  and  men  ftf  influence  on  the 
frontier,  were  deliberating  on  the  expediency  of  taking  their 
protection  into  their  own  hands,  and  conducting  expedition 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  91 

into  the  Indian  country,  on  their  own  responsibility.  So 
strong  and  general  was  this  feeling,  that  intelligent  men  at 
the  different  settlements  and  stations,  simultaneously,  and 
without  concert,  addressed  General  Harmar,  as  the  com- 
mander of  the  United  States'  troops ;  representing,  in  strong 
terms,  the  murder  of  men,  women,  and  children,  daily  per- 
petrated by  the  Indians,  and  the  impossibility  of  sustaining 
the  settlements  much  longer,  unless  more  efficient  measures 
were  resorted  to  by  Congress.  Among  those  who  wrote  to 
the  General  on  that  subject,  were,  Levi  Todd,  of  Fayette ; 
Robert  Patterson,  of  Lexington;  and  Judge  Innes,  of  Dan- 
ville. In  these  communications,  the  difficulties  and  dis- 
tresses of  the  people  were  depicted,  and  measures  sug- 
gested to  relieve  them. 

Letters  were  also  written  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  reca- 
pitulating the  complaints  and  distresses  of  the  people.     In 
July,  1790,  Judge  Innes  wrote  thus  to  the  War  Department : 
"  I  have  been  intimately  acquainted  with  this  district  from 
1783,  and  I  can  with  truth  say,  that  in  that  period,  the 
Indians  have  always  been  the  aggressors— that  any  incur- 
sions  made   into   their  country,  have  been   produced   by 
reiterated  injuries*,  committed  by  them— that  the  predator}- 
mode  of  warfare  they  have  carried  on,  renders  it  difficult, 
and  indeed  impossible  to  discriminate;  or  to  ascertain  to 
what  tribe  the  offenders  belong— that  since  his  first  visit 
to  the  district,  in  November,  1783,  he  could  venture  to  say, 
that  more  than  fifteen  hundred  persons  had  been  killed 
and    taken   prisoners   by   the   Indians— that  upwards   of 
twenty  thousand  horses  had  been  taken  and  carried  off, 
with   other   property,   consisting  of   money,  merchandise, 
household  goods,  wearing  apparel,  etc.,  of  great  value  — 
that  the  government  had  been  repeatedly  informed  of  those 
injuries,  and  that  they  continued  to  be  perpetrated  daily, 
notwithstanding  which,  the  people  had  received  no  satis- 
factory information,  whether  the  government  intended  to 
afford  them  relief,  or  not. 


92  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

He  remarked,  that  the  consequences  to  the  district  were 
serious,  and  might  be  fatal — that  the  population  on  the 
frontier,  was  actually  decreasing,  by  the  murders  and  dep- 
redations constantly  committed  by  the  Indians  —  that  those 
occurrences  not  only  reduced  the  number  and  strength  of 
the  settlers,  but  deterred  others  from  joining  them,  who 
had  been  making  arrangements  to  do  so  —  that  as  a  con- 
sequence, their  strength  was  lessened,  their  wealth  dimin- 
ished, and  the  value  of  their  lands  decreased.  He  enquired 
what  the  result  would  be ;  and  answered  the  question  by 
assuring  the  Department,  that  volunteer  expeditions  wrould 
be  carried  into  the  Indian  country,  as  well  for  the  purpose 
of  revenge,  as  for  protection  and  self-preservation;  and 
that  it  would  not  be  in  the  power  of  the  Government  to 
restrain  or  regulate  them;  and,  as  a  consequence,  the  vol- 
unteers engaged,  would  not  discriminate  between  the  hos- 
tile Indians,  and  those  with  whom  the  United  States  had 
treaties,  but  would  treat  all  as  enemies,  who  might  come 
in  their  way ;  and  that  the  friendly  Indians  would  lose  all 
confidence  in  the  Government — that  such  a  result  would 
not  only  prevent  the  accomplishment  of  the  views  of 
Congress,  but  would  undo  all  that  had  been  previously 
done. 

He  then  added,  "I  will,  sir, be  candid  on  this  subject,  not 
only  as  an  inhabitant  of  Kentucky,  but  as  a  friend  to  so- 
ciety, who  wishes  to  see  order  and  regularity  preserved  in 
the  Government  under  which  he  lives.  The  people  Bay 
they  have  long  groaned  under  their  misfortunes  —  they  see 
no  prospect  of  relief — they  constitute  the  strength  and  the 
wealth  of  the  western  country,  and  yet  all  measures  here- 
tofore attempted,  have  been  committed  for  execution,  to 
the  bandfl  of  strangers,  who  have  no  interest  in  common 
with  the  West.  They  are  the  great  sufferers,  and  vet  have 
no  voice  in  the  matters  which  so  vitally  affect  them.  They 
are  accused  as  being  the  aggressors,  and  have  no  represen- 
tative to  state,  or  to  justify  their  conduct. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  93 

"These  are  the  general  sentiments  of  the  western  people, 
who  are  beginning  to  want  faith  in  the  Government,  and 
appear  determined  to  avenge  themselves.  For  this  pur- 
pose a  meeting  was  lately  held  in  this  place,  by  a  number 
of  respectable  characters,  to  determine  on  the  propriety  of 
carrying  on  their  expeditions  this  fall.  For  the  purpose  of 
obtaining  a  more  general  representation  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  district,  the  business  was  postponed,  till  the  meeting 
which  is  to  be  held  about  the  26th  instant ;  at  which  time 
there  will  be  a  very  general  collection  of  the  people  of  the 
district;  and  unless  some  satisfactory  information  is  re- 
ceived before  that  time,  I  fully  expect  one  or  more  expedi- 
tions will  be  determined  on.  Impressed  with  the  idea,  that 
the  foregoing  observations  will  not  be  unacceptable  to  you, 
as  an  officer  of  the  Government,  through  whose  department 
they  may  be  communicated  to  the  President,  I  shall  make 
no  apology  for  the  length  of  my  letter." 

In  a  note  dated  on  the  8th  of  the  same  month,  the  Judge 
says,  that  he  had  that  day  received  a  communication  from 
General  St.  Clair,  dated  the  5th  instant,  at  the  rapids  of  the 
Ohio,  in  which  he  informs  him,  that  the  expectations  of 
peace,  so  much  to  be  desired,  could  not  be  realized  with  the 
Indians  on  the  Wabash;  and  that  in  consequence,  he  had 
come  to  the  Falls  sooner  than  he  should  otherwise  have 
done,  to  prepare  to  operate  against  them;  and  that  he  had 
requested  the  field  officers  of  the  district  to  be  prepared 
whenever  he  should  call  for  the  proportions  of  militia  they 
were  severally  to  furnish,  in  consequence  of  orders  received 
from  the  President. 

Letters  of  a  character  similar  to  that  of  Judge  Innes,* 

*  It  will  appear  from  the  sequel,  that  the  object  of  those  letters  had  been 
anticipated  by  the  President,  and  that  orders  had  reached  General  St.  Clair  to 
that  effect,  about  the  same  time  they  were  written,  in  consequence  of  which, 
two  expeditions,  one  under  General  Scott,  and  another  under  Colonel  Wilkin- 
son, were  ordered,  organized,  and  marched  in  succession,  into  the  Indian  set- 
tlements on  the  Wabash,  with  very  brilliant  success. 


94  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

were  addressed  to  the  Department  from  other  quarters,  set- 
ting forth  the   depredations  daily  committed  on  the  liv 
and  property  of  the  people  of  the  West,  and  of  emigrants 
on  their  way  thither. 

The  pioneers  who  descended  the  Ohio,  on  their  way 
westward,  will  remember  while  they  live,  the  lofty  rock 
standing  a  short  distance  above  the  mouth  of  the  Scioto,  on 
the  Virginia  shore,  which  was  occupied  for  years  by  the 
savages,  as  a  favorite  watch-tower,  from  which  boats,  as- 
cending and  descending,  could  be  discovered  at  a  great 
distance.  From  that  memorable  spot,  hundreds  of  human 
beings,  men,  women  and  children,  while  unconscious  oil 
immediate  danger,  have  been  seen  in  the  distance  and 
marked  for  destruction.  The  murders  and  depredations 
committed  in  that  vicinity  at  all  periods  of  the  war,  were 
so  shocking  as  to  attract  universal  notice;  letters  were  writ- 
ten to  General  Harmar,  from  various  quarters,  calling  his 
attention  to  the  subject,  and  praying  that  measures  might 
be  taken,  without  delay,  to  check  the  evil.  They  informed 
him  that  scarcely  a  boat  passed  the  rock  without  being  at- 
tacked, and  in  most  instances  captured;  and  that  unless 
something  were  done  without  delay,  the  navigation  of  the 
river  would  necessarily  be  abandoned. 

Some  of  those  letters  complained  of  the  negligence  of 
the  government,  and  their  inattention  to  the  interest  and 
safety  of  the  West:  some  of  them  stated  explicitly,  that 
the  distress  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  was  so  great, 
and  the  want  of  confidence  in  the  disposition  of  govern- 
ment to  protect  them  so  general,  lliat  the  people  were  on 
the  eve  of  resorting  to  measures  for  their  gaiety,  both  offen- 
sive and  defensive,  regardless  of  the  plans  and  policy  of 
Congress;  but  that  the  more  considerate  portion  of  the 
settlers  were  unwilling  to  proceed  in  any  other  than  a 
legally  authorized  way;  and  that  the)  therefore  called  upon 
him  for  advice  and  assistance,  and  requested  him  to  co- 
operate with  them  in  an  immediate  expedition  from  Lime- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  95 

stone,  against  the  savages  near  the  mouth  of  the  Scioto. 
At  the  same  time  the  general  was  advised,  by  letters  from 
Fayette,  that  a  party  was  forming  in  the  counties  north  of 
the  Kentucky  river,  for  the  same  purpose  ;  that  they  would 
rendezvous  at  Lexington  on  the  next  Thursday,  and  at 
Limestone  on  the  following  Saturday,  and  expressing  a 
confident  belief  that  they  should  receive  countenance  and 
aid  from  the  officers  of  the  general  government. 

They  reminded  him  that  the  leaders  of  the  pioneers,  in 
common  with  himself,  had  endured  the  privations  and  sac- 
rifices of  the  Revolutionary  struggle,  and  that  they  were 
entitled  to  protection  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  rights  for 
which  they  had  periled  their  lives,  and  exhausted  their 
property.  They  were  not  willing  to  believe  that  they  would 
be  left  to  their  fate,  and  suffered  to  perish  in  the  wilderness. 
On  the  contrary,  they  indulged  a  hope  that  they  would  be 
assisted  by  Governor  St.  Clair,  and  General  Harmar,  in 
carrying  into  successful  execution  the  project  in  which  they 
were  then  engaged ; — which  was  to  destroy  the  Indians  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Scioto,  and  increase  the  safety  of  persons 
emigrating  to  the  West. 

A  communication  of  a  similar  character  was  received 
from  Colonel  Patterson,  of  Lexington,  in  which  he  assured 
General  Harmar  that  the  persons  with  whom  he  was  acting 
had  no  desire  to  infringe  on  the  rights  of  the  Federal 
Government,  but  to  act  with  them,  and  under  their  direction. 
He  also  assured  him,  in  confirmation  of  letters  previously 
received,  that  on  Saturday,  the  17th  instant,  five  hundred 
men  at  least,  would  be  at  Limestone,  furnished  with  twelve 
days  provision,  ready  to  co-operate  with  the  troops  of  the 
United  States,  in  an  effort  to  harass  the  Indians,  and  par- 
ticularly to  rout  and  destroy  those  who  were  stationed  on 
the  Ohio  river  near  the  mouth  of  the  Scioto. 

In  consequence  of  the  information  contained  in  those 
communications,  the  General  resolved  to  make  an  imme- 
diate effort  to  accomplish  the   object  so  warmly  recom- 


96  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

mended,  of  routing  and  destroying  the  Indians  particularly 
referred  to.  The  plan  he  adopted  was  to  take  a  circuitous 
route,  and  strike  the  Scioto  pretty  high  up,  and  from  thence 
to  march  to  its  mouth,  hoping  to  intercept  some  of  their 
parties  on  the  route.  His  plan  being  formed,  the  command 
of  the  enterprise  was  committed  to  General  Scott,  who  took 
up  his  line  of  march  on  the  18th  of  April,  and  proceeded 
about  twelve  miles.  In  the  course  of  the  day  four  moccasin 
tracks  were  discovered,  which  induced  the  General  to 
detach  a  small  party  of  mounted  men,  who  fell  in  with  the 
savages,  killed  them,  and  brought  in  their  scalps.  No 
official  report  of  this  movement  seems  to  have  been  made 
to  the  War  Department,  from  which  full  information  might 
be  obtained.  It  appears,  however,  that  the  chief  object  of 
it  must  have  failed ;  as  General  Harmar  afterwards  ex- 
pressed his  regret  that  it  had  been  unsuccessful,  alledging 
that  every  exertion  in  his  power  had  been  made,  to  accom- 
plish the  object. 

In  September,  Governor  St.  Clair  advised  the  War 
Department,  that  the  depredations  on  the  Ohio  and  the 
Wabash  continued; — that  almost  every  day  brought  an  ac- 
count of  some  murder  or  robbery;  that  a  number  of  horses 
had  been  taken  from  the  vicinity  of  Marietta;  that  shortly 
before,  a  boat  belonging  to  Colonel  Vigo,  of  Post  Vincennes, 
a  gentleman  to  whom  the  United  States  were  under  great 
obligations,  was  fired  upon  near  the  mouth  of  Blue  river, 
and  three  of  his  men  killed;  and  that  afterwards,  in  at- 
tempting to  ascend  the  Wabash,  his  boat  was  again  at- 
tacked, captured  and  plundered  ;  and  that  about  the  saint- 
time  Captain  McCurdy,  of  the  regular  troops,  was  tired  on 
while  ascending  the  Ohio  river. 

Although  these  depredations  were  countenanced,  and 
probably  instigated  by  British  agents, yet  the  American  gov- 
ernment spared  no  pains  to  convince  the  British  comman- 
dant at  Detroit,  that  the  United  States,  in  their  military  pre- 
parations in  the  West,  meditated  nothing  of  a  hostile  char- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  97 

acter  against  them.  Actuated  by  that  spirit,  Governor  St. 
Clair,  by  order  of  the  President,  in  September,  1790,  ad- 
dressed the  commanding  officer  at  that  post,  stating,  that 
probably  an  account  of  the  military  preparations  going  on 
in  the  West  might  reach  him,  and  give  some  uneasiness, 
unless  the  object  to  which  they  were  to  be  directed  was 
perfectly  known;  and  that  to  prevent  any  such  difficulty,  he 
was  commanded  by  the  President  of  the  United  States  to 
give  him  the  fullest  assurances  of  the  pacific  disposition, 
entertained  towards  Great  Britain  and  all  her  dependencies, 
and  to  inform  him,  explicitly,  that  the  expedition  about  to 
be  undertaken,  was  not  intended  against  the  post  he  had 
the  honor  of  commanding,  nor  any  other  place  then  in  the 
possession  of  the  troops  of  his  Britannic  Majesty;  but  was 
on  foot  for  the  sole  design  of  chastising  and  humbling  some 
of  the  savage  tribes,  whose  depredations  on  the  American 
people,  and  on  humanity  itself,  had  become  intolerable. 
Having  made  that  candid  explanation,  he  proceeded  to  say, 
that  there  was  every  reason  to  expect,  as  well  from  his  own 
personal  character,  as  from  the  regard  he  had  for  the 
character  of  his  King  and  nation,  that  those  tribes  would 
meet  with  neither  countenance  nor  assistance  from  him,  or 
from  any  under  his  command,  and  that  he  would  do  all 
within  his  power  to  restrain  and  check  the  trading  people 
under  his  influence,  by  whose  instigation,  many  of  the 
injuries  committed  by  the  savages  had  been  perpetrated. 

From  the  same  motive,  and  to  give  full  effect  to  the 
pacific  policy  of  the  government,  Major  Hamtramck  dis- 
patched a  Frenchman  by  the  name  of  Gameline,  from  fort 
Knox,  on  the  5th  of  April,  with  instructions  to  proceed  to 
the  Indian  towns,  with  speeches  from  Governor  St.  Clair, 
inviting  them  to  enter  into  a  treaty  of  peace  with  the  United 
States,  and  especially  to  confirm  the  treaty  made  at  Mari- 
etta, in  1789.  In  pursuance  of  his  instructions,  M.  Gameline 
visited  the  principal  towns  on  the  waters  of  the  Wabash 
and  Maumee,  frequently  called  the  Miami  of  the  Lakes, 
7 


98  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

where  he  met  the  Piankeshaws,  Miamies,  Shawanees, 
Kickapoos,  Ottawas,  and  Delawares.  They  all  received 
him  with  kindness,  but  refused  to  take  the  wampum  sent 
by  the  Governor,  alledging  that  they  could  not  give  him  a 
final  answer,  till  they  heard  from  their  father  at  Detroit. 
Some  of  the  chiefs  told  him  "  they  were  receiving  speeches 
from  the  Americans  from  all  quarters,  but  no  two  of  them 
were  alike;"  and  that  they  supposed  the  pale  men  intended 
to  deceive  them.  The}*"  complained  of  the  treaty  of  Mari- 
etta— denied  that  it  was  made  by  their  chiefs,  alledging  it 
to  have  been  signed  by  their  young  men,  who  had  no 
power  to  act. 

Blue  Jacket,  chief  of  the  Shawanees,  invited  him  to 
supper  at  his  cabin,  and  told  him,  in  the  presence  of  the 
other  chiefs,  that  after  further  deliberation  they  had  con- 
cluded, that  it  was  better  for  him  (Gameline)  to  go  to  De- 
troit and  see  the  commandant,  who  would  call  all  his  chil- 
dren together  to  hear  the  speech. 

On  the  29th  of  April,  M.  Gameline  succeeded  in  getting 
all  the  chiefs  who  were  present,  assembled  in  council,  when 
he  told  them  he  could  not  go  to  Detroit ;  that  the  speeches 
were  directed  to  the  nations  of  the  Wabash  and  the  Mau- 
mee  ;  and  that  to  prove  the  sincerity  of  the  speech,  and  the 
heart  of  Governor  St.  Clair,  he  had  given  them  a  copy,  to 
be  shown  to  the  commandant  at  Detroit.  He  told  them  he 
had  nothing  to  say  to  the  commandant,  nor  the  commandant 
to  him  :  that  if  they  intended  to  take  him  to  Detroit,  they 
must  determine  to  do  so  immediately;  otherwise  he  must  go 
back  as  soon  as  possible." 

Blue  Jacket  then  rose  and  said, — "My  friend,  we  are  all 
well  pleased  with  what  you  say.  Our  intention  is  not  to 
force  you  to  go  to  Detroit.  It  is  only  a  proposal,  thinking  it 
for  the  best.  Our  answer  is  the  same  as  the  Miamies.  In 
thirty  nights  we  shall  send  a  full  and  positive  answer  to 
Post  Vincennes,  by  a  young  man  from  each  nation." 

In  the  evening,  Bluejacket  told  him,  in  a  private  manner, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  99 

that  his  nation  was  in  doubt  of  the  sincerity  of  the  "  big 
knives,"  having  been  already  deceived  by  them.  He  said 
"they  had  first  taken  their  lands,  then  put  out  their  fire,  and 
sent  away  their  young  men  to  hunt,  without  a  mouthful  of 
meat;  and  that  they  had  also  taken  away  their  women." 
"Many  of  us,"  said  he,  "cannot  forget  those  injuries,  or  think 
of  them  without  great  pain."  He  further  said  "  that  some 
of  the  tribes  were  afraid  these  offers  of  peace  were  decep- 
tive— that  they  might  take  away  all  their  lands,  and  serve 
them  at  last,  as  they  had  done  before."  He  alledged  "that 
the  new  settlements  on  the  Ohio,  proved  that  the  whites 
intended  to  encroach  on  them;  and  that  if  they  did  not  keep 
the  north  side  of  the  river  clear,  there  could  be  no  proper 
reconciliation  with  the  Shawanees,  or  with  the  Iroquois, 
Wyandots,  and  perhaps  many  other  tribes." 

LeGris,  a  Miami  Chief,  asked  M.  Gameline  what  chiefs 
had  made  the  treaty  at  Muskingum.  He  had  heard  of  it 
some  time  ago,  but  was  told  they  were  not  chiefs,  nor  dele- 
gates, but  young  men,  without  authority  or  instruction  from 
the  chiefs — that  they  went  to  the  treaty  clandestinely,  and 
that  that  would  be  brought  up  in  their  next  council.  Spe- 
cial conversations  were  had  with  other  chiefs,  but  without 
obtaining  any  definite  answer.  Finding  that  no  favorable 
impression  could  be  made  on  their  minds,  M.  Gameline 
returned  and  reported  accordingly. 

All  hopes  of  concluding  a  peace  having  failed,  Congress 
resolved  to  increase  the  military  force,  and  to  destroy  at 
once,  the  Miami  villages  situate  at  and  near  the  junction  of 
the  rivers  St.  Mary  and  St.  Joseph,  where  they  received  the 
name  of  the  Maumee  river.  For  that  purpose,  the  Gover- 
nor of  the  Territory  was  authorised  to  call  on  Pennsylvania 
for  five  hundred,  and  on  Kentucky  for  one  thousand  militia, 
to  join  General  Harmar's  regiment,  containing,  at  the  time, 
four  hundred  effective  men.  On  the  15th  of  July,  1790,  the 
Governor  issued  a  circular  to  the  county  Lieutenants  in  the 
District  of  Kentucky,  stating  in  substance,  that  it  was  the 


100  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

interest  and  the  wish  of  the  United  States,  to  be  at  peace 
with  the  Indian  tribes,  if  they  could  be  so  on  reasonable 
terms,  and  that  notice  of  that  disposition  had  been  commu- 
nicated to  them  all,  inconformity  with  the  direction  of  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  but  without  any  beneficial 
results.  That  there  was  no  prospect  of  peace  with  the 
tribes  on  the  Wabash,  who  continued  hostile  to  the  United 
States,  and  especially  to  Virginia.  That  from  information 
recently  received,  many  parties  had  already  gone  out 
against  the  American  settlements,  and  that  he  was  in- 
structed by  the  President  to  take  measures  for  their  se- 
curity. 

He  further  advised  them,  that  the  commanding  officer  o 
the  troops,  and  himself,  had  concerted  a  plan  of  offensive 
operations,  and  that  in  conformity  with  instructions  from 
the  Department,  a  copy  of  it  was  then  inclosed.  He  also 
called  on  them  in  the  name  of  the  President,  for  the  number 
of  men  allotted  to  their  counties  respectively,  to  be  officered 
according  to  the  militia  laws  of  their  District,  to  act  in  con- 
junction with  the  Federal  troops,  and  to  rendezvous  at  the 
times  and  places  specified  in  the  order.  The  detachment 
from  Pennsylvania,  consisting  of  five  hundred  rank  and  file, 
were  ordered  to  assemble  on  the  3rd  of  September,  at  Mc- 
Maken's  creek,  four  miles  below  Wheeling. 

On  the  7th  of  August,  the  Governor  addressed  a  letter  to 
the  senior  officer  of  the  Pennsylvania  militia,  at  McMaken's 
creek,  directing  him,  as  soon  as  the  men  from  the  different 
counties  had  arrived,  to  proceed  without  loss  of  time  to  fort 
Harmar,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum,  and  there  join 
the  Federal  troops  under  the  command  of  Major  Doughty. 

He  expressed  a  strong  desire,  that  the  whole  quota  of 
that  state  might  assemble  at  the  time  and  place  appointed. 
He  directed  them  not  to  remain  a  moment  longer  than  wi 
necessary,  and  at  all  events,  to  be  in  motion  from  thence, 
on  or  before  the  10th  of  September,  as  a  longer  delay  might 
create  embarrassment,  if  not  render  the  expedition   alto- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  101 

gether  abortive.  It  was  enjoined  on  him  not  to  delay,  even 
till  the  tenth,  if  the  different  detachments  of  his  command 
sooner  arrived ;  and  if  they  were  not  all  present  when  he 
set  out  for  Marietta,  to  leave  directions  for  those  who  might 
afterwards  arrive,  to  follow,  with  all  possible  expedition,  to 
Fort  Washington,  without  halting  at  Muskingum. 

It  was  also  enjoined  on  him,  to  take  the  necessary  mea- 
sures for  the  security  of  his  camp,  at  the  rendezvous,  and 
on  the  way  down  the  river.  He  wTas  told  that  a  surprise 
was  ever  to  be  guarded  against,  and  that  he  should,  there- 
fore, never  encamp,  without  establishing  proper  guards 
and  patrols,  nor  even  venture  on  shore,  for  ever  so  short  a 
time,  without  the  same  precaution.  It  was  also  impressed 
on  his  mind,  that  as  there  might  be  some  friendly  Indians 
in  the  neighborhood  of  McMaken's  creek,  who  had  a  right 
to  hunt  in  that  country,  it  was  of  great  consequence  that  no 
injury  should  be  done  to  any  of  them. 

He  was  therefore  charged  to  impress  on  the  minds  of  the 
men  under  his  command,  the  necessity  of  treating  those  In- 
dians with  kindness,  should  any  of  them  be  met  with.  He 
was  also  informed,  that  the  friendly  Indians  referred  to, 
were  the  Wyandots  and  the  Delawares,  with  whom  the 
United  States  had  treaties. 

It  appears  from  a  report  made  on  the  23d  of  September, 
that  every  thing  connected  with  the  army  was  in  a  better 
state  of  preparation  than  had  been  anticipated,  owing  to 
the  prudent  care  and  attention  of  General  Harmar,  and  the 
indefatigable  application  of  Captain  Ferguson.  The  mili- 
tia, from  Kentucky,  with  the  exception  of  one  hundred  and 
fifty  men,  arrived  at  Fort  Washington,  on  the  day  appoint- 
ed, and  those  who  were  tardy  came  in  subsequently,  and 
marched  to  join  the  army.  Major  Wyllys,  with  the  troops 
from  the  Falls,  came  up  on  the  22d  — Major  Doughty,  with 
part  of  the  garrison  of  Fort  Harmar,  arrived  on  the  25th — 
and  Lieutenant  Frothingham  followed  him,  with  the  re- 
mainder of  that  garrison.     The  troops  from  Pennsylvania 


102  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

were  dilatory — they  joined  the  army,  however,  soon  after 
it  had  marched  from  Fort  Washington. 

The  gratification  produced  by  the  punctual  arrival  of  the 
troops,  who  composed  the  army  of  General  Harmar,  was 
very  much  abated,  by  ascertaining  the  wretched  condition 
in  which  they  were.  Many  of  them  were  substitutes,  hired 
for  trifling  considerations,  by  those  who  had  been  drafted. 
Some  of  them  were  too  old  and  infirm  to  bear  the  fatigues 
of  an  active  campaign ;  and  the  men  were  generally  awk- 
ward, and  undisciplined.  It  was  the  concurrent  opinion 
of  the  officers  of  the  army,  that  these  detachments  of  militia 
were  the  most  inactive  and  inefficient,  that  had  ever  been 
seen  on  the  western  frontiers. 

In  addition  to  this,  a  large  portion  of  their  arms  was 
unfit  for  use.  Some  of  their  muskets  and  rifles  were  with- 
out locks.  There  was  also  a  state  of  insubordination 
among  the  men;  and  a  disregard  of  military  rule,  which 
augured  any  thing,  rather  than  success.  In  these  facts 
might  have  been  read  the  secret  of  the  severe  loss  of  the 
army,  which  alone  gave  to  the  expedition  the  repulsive 
name  of  "  Harmar's  defeat." 

The  season  being  far  advanced  when  the  militia  arrived, 
and  the  point  of  attack  lying  at  a  great  distance,  through 
a  wilderness  country,  General  Harmar  was  compelled  to 
commence  his  march,  without  delaying  a  day,  to  instruct 
or  train  his  undisciplined  troops.  About  the  1st  of  Octo- 
ber, 1790,  he  marched  from  Fort  Washington,  by  the  route 
reported  by  his  guides,  as  being  the  shortest  and  the  best. 
He  proceeded  first  to  the  Indian  town  on  the  Little  Miami, 
then  called  Old  Chillicothe,  now  Old  Town,  three  miles 
above  Xenia;  and  from  thenoe  to  Loramie's  crossing  of  the 
Miami.  When  he  arrived  at  that  place,  which,  he  in.dn- 
stood  from  his  guides,  was  about  forty  milei  from  the  place 
of  his  destination,  he  received  advice  that  the  inhabitants 
of  the  villages  were  unapprised  of  his  approach  —  that 
they   had   not   been    joined   by    any   of   the    neighboring 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  103 

tribes— that  they  were  not  in  force,  and  were  quarreling 
among  themselves. 

This  information  was  derived  from  a  prisoner,  taken  on 
the  13th  of  October,  and  it  determined  the  General  to 
detach  Colonel  Hardin  with  six  hundred  men,  including 
fifty  of  the  regular  troops,  commanded  by  Major  Zeigler, 
with  orders  to  make  a  forced  march  on  the  villages.  In 
obedience  to  that  order,  the  detachment  was  organized  and 
in  motion,  early  the  next  day.  The  army  with  the  baggage, 
etc.,  followed  as  fast  as  circumstances  would  permit. 

When  the  advance  under  Hardin  reached  the  villages, 
they  found  them  deserted.  As  soon  as  the  General  ar- 
rived with  the  residue  of  the  army,  he  ordered  the  towns 
to  be  burnt— the  fruit  trees,  of  which  there  was  a  large 
number,  to  be  girdled,  and  every  description  of  property, 
including  at  least  twenty  thousand  bushels  of  corn,  to  be 
destroyed.  That  order  having  been  literally  obeyed,  the 
great  object  of  the  enterprise  was  accomplished;  which 
was  to  cripple  the  enemy  by  destroying  the  ample  means 
they  had  provided,  during  the  summer,  to  sustain  them- 
selves in  the  field,  and  carry  on  an  active  campaign  during 
the  ensuing  winter,  without  interruption. 

Not  content  with  the  complete  accomplishment  of  the 
great  purpose  of  the  campaign,  the  General  was  ambitious 
of  gaining  further  laurels ;  and,  forgetful  of  the  inefficiency 
of  the  greater  portion  of  his  men,  he  sent  out  three  detach- 
ments in  succession,  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy ;  which  might 
have  been  prudent,  if  his  troops  had  been  veterans,  or  even 
moderately  disciplined.  The  first  of  these  movements 
consisted  of  three  hundred  men,  commanded  by  Colonel 
Trotter,  who  returned  on  the  same  day,  having  killed  two 
Indians.  Some  intimations  having  been  made,  that  this 
adventure  indicated  more  of  prudence  than  belonged  to  its 
true  character,  Colonel  Hardin  was  sent  out  immediately, 
with  the  same  detachment,  who  was  attacked  by  the 
Indians,  and  defeated  with  great  loss,  in  consequence  of 


104  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

the  cowardly  conduct  of  the  militia,  who  took  to  their  heels 
on  the  first  fire. 

These  movements  took  place  while  the  army  remained 
on  the  site  of  the  burnt  villages.  After  they  had  progressed 
one  day  on  their  homeward  march,  Major  Wyllys  was 
sent  back  with  four  hundred  chosen  men,  under  an  expec- 
tation, that  many  of  the  Indians  would  have  returned  to 
examine  the  ruins  of  their  villages,  who  might  be  taken  by 
surprise  and  cut  to  pieces.  On  this  occasion  also,  the 
militia  fled  in  disorder,  and  Major  Wyllys,  a  very  brave, 
experienced  officer,  with  most  of  the  regular  troops  under 
his  command,  were  killed. 

The  army  then  proceeded  by  slow  and  easy  marches  to 
Fort  Washington.  The  Indians  pursued  them,  but  such 
was  the  vigilance  of  the  General,  that  they  were  unable  to 
annoy,  or  injure  the  troops,  during  the  march.  As  soon  as 
they  arrived  at  Fort  Washington,  the  militia  were  dis- 
banded, and  dismissed,  and  the  General  repaired  to  the 
seat  of  government,  where  he  resigned  the  command,  and 
obtained  a  Court  of  Inquiry. 

In  justice  to  the  character  of  General  Harmar,  reference 
should  be  had  to  the  official  report  of  the  Court  of  Inquiry. 
It  will  be  found  in  that  document,  that  the  officers,  and 
others  who  were  examined,  unitedly  declared,  that  the 
militia  were  very  badly  equipped  —  that  they  were  destitute 
of  camp-kettles  and  axes  —  that  their  arms,  generally,  were 
very  bad,  out  of  repair,  and  almost  useless ;  and  that  mus- 
kets had  been  brought,  without  locks,  under  an  expectation 
that  they  could  be  repaired  in  camp. 

It  will  also  be  found,  that  many  of  the  men  were  unfit  for 
service,  and  scarcely  able  to  bear  arms,  being  old  and 
infirm;  that  they  were  not  of  that  class  of  active  woods- 
men, usually  found  in  the  frontier  counties;  that  a  great 
number  of  them  were  substitutes,  unused  to  fire-arms;  that 
some,  particularly  from  Pennsylvania,  were  so  awkward, 
that  they  could  not  take  off  a  gun-lock,  oil  it,  and  put  it  on 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  iQ5 

again,  or  put  in  a  flint  so  as  to  answer  its  purpose,  with- 
out assistance ;  that  the  pack-horse  men  were  ignorant  of 
their  duty,  inactive,  and  insolent;  that  there  was  a  spirit  of 
insubordination  among  the  militia,  which  rendered  it  im- 
possible to  inflict  punishment,  without  danger  of  a  revolt. 

It  will  also  be  found,  that  the  officers  concurred  in  de- 
claring, that  the  organization  of  the  army  was  judicious, 
and  that  the  heavy  loss  sustained  on  the  expedition,  should 
be  ascribed  to  the  ignorance,  imbecility,  insubordination, 
and  want  of  equipment  of  the  militia,  and  not  to  any  defect 
of  capacity,  or  bravery,  in  the  General  commanding,  or  in 
the  officers  who  served  under  him. 

Although  the  termination  of  the  expedition  of  1790  has 
been  spoken  of  as  a  defeat,  it  is  believed,  that  when  the 
facts  are  correctly  and  impartially  considered,  it  will  be 
found  worthy  of  a  more  honorable  name.  The  movement 
was  got  up  in  haste.  The  troops,  with  the  exception  of 
three  hundred  and  twenty,  rank  and  file,  were  undisciplined, 
insubordinate,  and  badly  equipped  militia.  They  were 
called  together  for  the  purpose  of  punishing  the  Indians 
of  the  Miami  villages;  and  it  was  distinctly  understood, 
that  when  they  had  done  so,  the  purpose  of  the  movement 
would  be  accomplished.  It  was  not  expected  that  the 
troops  were  to  hold  possession  of  the  villages,  but  having 
destroyed  them,  and  the  property  they  contained,  they  were 
to  return  to  Fort  Washington,  and  be  disbanded. 

If  that  object  was  fully  and  literally  accomplished,  as  the 
fact  most  certainly  was,  it  cannot  be  said,  in  truth,  that  the 
campaign  was  a  failure,  or  the  result  of  it  a  defeat.  It  was 
stated  in  official  reports  to  the  War  Department,  that  the 
towns  were  taken,  and  thoroughly  destroyed,  without  the 
loss  of  a  single  American  soldier.  Those  places  of  rendez- 
vous, where  British  traders  resorted,  to  poison  the  minds 
of  the  Indians,  and  excite  them  to  hostility  against  the 
Americans,  were  broken  up.     The  returns  also  show,  that 


10Q  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

three  hundred  houses  and  wigwams  were  burnt,  twenty 
thousand  bushels  of  corn,  in  the  ear,  collected  and  destroy- 
ed ;  and  that  not  a  vestige  of  destructible  improvement  or 
useful  property  was  spared. 

These  being  the  facts,  the  Commander-in-chief  announced 
in  general  orders,  that  the  army  had  completely  accom- 
plished the  object  for  which  it  was  ordered,  to  wit:  a  total 
destruction  of  the  Miami  towns,  together  with  the  vast 
amount  of  property  found  in  them,  and  in  the  vicinity ;  and 
that  they  were  about  to  commence  their  march,  and  return 
to  Fort  Washington.  At  that  time,  the  great  object  of  the 
campaign  was  literally  accomplished,  and  nothing  was 
heard  but  the  notes  of  commendation.  An  important  vic- 
tory had  been  achieved,  and  if  the  army  had  then  returned, 
they  and  their  commander  would  have  been  hailed  as  vic- 
tors and  crowned  with  glory. 

But  subsequent  efforts  to  inflict  further  injury  on  the 
enemy,  proved  disastrous,  by  the  bad  conduct  of  the  mili- 
tia, of  which  neither  the  cause,  nor  the  consequences  ought 
to  be  charged  to  the  account  of  the  General,  whose  move- 
ments, it  was  admitted,  were  judiciously  planned ;  and,  as 
far  as  the  officers  and  the  federal  troops  were  concerned, 
prudently  and  bravely  conducted. 

From  the  returns  of  Lieutenant  Denny,  the  adjutant  of 
the  army,  the  loss  of  the  enemy  was  set  down  at  from  a 
hundred,  to  a  hundred  and  twenty,  and  the  loss  of  the 
American  troops  at  one  hundred  and  eighty.  The  most 
that  can  be  said,  justly,  is,  that  the  complete  accomplish- 
ment of  the  important  objects  of  the  expedition,  was  at- 
tended with  a  greater  loss  than  might  have  been  expected. 

Among  the  killed  were  Major  Wyllys  and  Lieutenant 
Frothingham,  of  the  federal  troops;  and  Major  Foiuain, 
Captains  Thorp,  Scott,  and  McMurtree;  Lieutenants  Clark 
and  Rogers;  Ensigns  Sweet,  Bridges,  and  Thielkeld,  of  the 
militia. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  107 

This  expedition  was  followed  by  vigorous  efforts  on  the 
part  of  the  savages,  to  harass  and  break  up  the  American 
settlements;  in  which  they  must  have  succeeded,  but  for 
the  total  destruction  of  their  property  and  provisions,  just 
at  the  approach  of  winter. 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  early  adventurers  to  the  Miami  Purchase. — Stations  erected. — Attacked 
by  the  Indians. — Communications  of  President  Washington  to  Congress. — 
Statement  showing  the  weakness  of  the  Ohio  Company's  settlement. — Gen. 
Scott's  expedition  against  the  Wabash  Indians. — Its  celerity  and  success. — 
Col.  Wilkinson's  expedition  against  the  same  tribes. — Conducted  with  skill 
and  success. — Organization  of  Gen.  St.  Clair's  army. — Encamped  at  Lud- 
low's Station. — Its  number. — The  campaign. — The  cause  of  the  defeat. — 
Court  of  Inquiry. — The  General  acquitted  of  all  censure. 

A  large  number  of  the  original  adventurers  to  the  Miami 
Purchase,  had  exhausted  their  means  by  paying  for  their 
land,  and  removing  their  families  to  the  country.  Others 
were  wholly  destitute  of  property,  and  came  out  as  volun- 
teers, under  the  expectation  of  obtaining,  gratuitously,  such 
small  tracts  of  land,  as  might  be  forfeited  by  the  pur- 
chasers, under  Judge  Symmes,  for  not  making  the  improve- 
ments required  by  the  conditions  stipulated  in  the  terms  of 
sale  and  settlement  of  Miami  lands,  published  by  the  Judge, 
in  1787;  which  will  be  more  fully  explained  in  a  subse- 
quent chapter.  The  class  of  adventurers  first  named,  was 
comparatively  numerous,  and  had  come  out  under  an  ex- 
pectation of  taking  immediate  possession  of  their  lands, 
and  of  commencing  the  cultivation  of  them  for  subsistence. 
Their  situation,  therefore,  was  distressing.  To  go  out  into 
the  wilderness  to  till  the  soil,  appeared  to  be  certain  death; 
to  remain  in  the  settlements  threatened  them  with  st;  rva- 
tion.  The  best  provided  of  the  Pioneers  found  it  difficult 
to  obtain  subsistence;  and,  of  course,  the  class  now  spoken 
of,  were  not  far  from  total  destitution.  They  depended  on 
game,  fish,  and  such  products  of  the  earth  as  could  be  raised 


BURNET'S  NOTES.  109 

on  small  patches  of  ground  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 
settlements. 

Occasionally  small  lots  of  provision  were  brought  down 
the  river  by  emigrants,  and  sometimes  were  transported  on 
pack-horses,  from  Lexington,  at  a  heavy  expense,  and  not 
without  danger.  But  supplies,  thus  procured,  were  beyond 
the  reach  of  those  destitute  persons  now  referred  to. 

Having  endured  these  privations  as  long  as  they  could 
be  borne,  the  more  resolute  of  them  determined  to  brave  the 
consequences  of  moving  on  to  their  lands.  To  accomplish 
the  object,  with  the  least  exposure,  those  whose  lands  were 
in  the  same  neighborhood,  united  as  one  family;  and  on 
that  principle,  a  number  of  associations  were  formed, 
amounting  to  a  dozen  or  more,  who  went  out  resolved  to 
maintain  their  positions. 

Each  party  erected  a  strong  block-house,  near  to  which 
their  cabins  were  put  up,  and  the  whole  was  enclosed  by 
strong  log   pickets.      This   being   done,  they   commenced 
clearing  their  lands,  and  preparing  for  planting  their  crops. 
During  the  day,  while  they  were  at  work,  one  person  was 
placed  as  a  sentinel,  to  warn  them  of  approaching  danger. 
At  sun-set  they  retired  to  the  block-house  and  their  cabins, 
taking  every  thing  of  value  within   the   pickets.     In   this 
manner  they  proceeded  from  day  to  day,  and  week  to  week, 
till  their  improvements  were  sufficiently  extensive  to  sup- 
port their  families.     During  this  time,  they  depended  for 
subsistence  on  wild  game,  obtained  at  some  hazard,  more 
than  on  the  scanty  supplies  they  were  able  to  procure  from 
the  settlements  on  the  river. 

In  a  short  time  these  stations  gave  protection  and  food 
to  a  large  number  of  destitute  families.  After  they  were 
established,  the  Indians  became  less  annoying  to  the  settle- 
ments on  the  Ohio,  as  part  of  their  time  was  employed  in 
watching  the  stations.  The  former,  however,  did  not 
escape,  but  endured  their  share  of  the  fruits  of  savage  hos- 
tility.    In  fact,  no  place  or  situation  was  exempt  from  dan- 


HO  BURNET'S  NOTES   ON  THE 

ger.     The  safety  of  the  Pioneer  depended  on  his  means  of 
defence,  and  on  perpetual  vigilance. 

The  Indians  viewed  those  Stations  with  great  jealousy, 
as  they  had  the  appearance  of  permanent  military  estab- 
lishments, intended  to  retain  possession  of  their  country. 
In  that  view  they  were  correct;  and  it  was  fortunate  for 
the  settlers,  that  the  Indians  wanted  either  the  skill  or  the 
means  of  demolishing  them.  The  truth  is,  they  had  no  idea 
of  the  flood  of  emigration  which  was  setting  towards  their 
borders,  and  did  not  feel  the  necessity  of  submitting  to  the 
loss  to  which  immediate  action  would  subject  them.  They 
certainly  were  not  deficient  in  bravery.  No  man  can  think 
so,  who  has  a  knowledge  of  the  countless  instances  of  their 
heroic  self-devotion.  Caution,  which  is  sometimes  called 
cowardice,  they  certainly  possessed  to  a  great  extent,  as  it 
was  a  part  of  their  education.  It  led  them  to  avoid  dan- 
ger, when  the  object  in  view  was  not  sufficiently  important 
to  overbalance  the  loss,  which  success,  or  victory,  would 
cost ;  but  when  they  saw  and  felt  the  importance  of  ac- 
complishing an  object,  and  resolved  to  undertake  it,  they 
appeared  not  to  know  what  fear  was  ;  danger  did  not  deter 
but  rather  urged  them  to  personal  exposure. 

They  could  not  have  been  insensible  of  the  consequences 
of  suffering  those  stations  to  be  maintained,  which  were  so 
many  military  occupations,  in  advance  of  an  unseen  enemy ; 
yet  they  did  not  perceive  the  necessity  of  immediate  action, 
and  therefore  deferred,  what  they  thought  could  be  per- 
formed as  well  at  some  future  time. 

The  truth  of  the  matter  is,  their  great  error  consisted  in 
permitting  those  works  to  be  constructed  at  all.  They  might 
have  prevented  it  with  great  ease,  but  they  appeared  not  to 
be  aware  of  the  serious  consequences  which  were  to  result, 
until  it  was  too  late  to  act  with  effect.  Several  attacks 
were,  however,  made  at  different  times,  with  an  apparent 
determination  to  destroy  them;  but  tiny  failed  in  every  in- 
stance.    The  assault  made  on  the  station  erected  by  Cap- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY,  U\ 

tain  Jacob  White,  a  Pioneer  of  much  energy  and  enterprise, 
at  the  third  crossing  of  Mill  creek  from  Cincinnati,  on  the 
old  Hamilton  road,  was  resolute  and  daring;  but  it  was 
gallantly  met,  and  successfully  repelled.  During  the  attack, 
which  was  in  the  night,  Captain  White  shot  and  killed  a 
warrior,  who  fell  so  near  the  block-house,  that  his  compan- 
ions could  not  remove  his  body.  The  next  morning  it  was 
brought  in,  and  judging  from  his  stature,  as  reported  by  the 
inmates,  he  might  have  claimed  descent  from  a  race  of 
giants.  On  examining  the  ground  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
block-house,  the  appearances  of  blood  indicated,  that  the 
assailants  had  suffered  severely. 

In  the  winter  of  1790-1,  an  attack  was  made,  with  a 
strong  party,  amounting,  probably  to  four  or  five  hundred, 
on  Dunlap's  station,  at  Colerain.  The  block-house  at  that 
place  was  occupied  by  a  small  number  of  United  States' 
troops,  commanded  by  Col.  Kingsbury,  then  a  subaltern  in 
the  army.  The  fort  was  furnished  with  a  piece  of  artillery, 
which  was  an  object  of  terror  to  the  Indians,  yet  that  did 
not  deter  them  from  an  attempt  to  effect  their  purpose. 
The  attack  was  violent,  and  for  some  time  the  station  was 
in  imminent  danger. 

The  savages  were  led  by  the  notorious  Simon  Girty,  and 
outnumbered  the  garrison,  at  least,  ten  to  one.  The  works 
were  entirely  of  wood,  and  the  only  obstacle  between  the 
assailants  and  the  assailed,  was  a  picket  of  logs,  that  might 
have  been  demolished,  with  a  loss  not  exceeding,  proba- 
bly, twenty  or  thirty  lives.  The  garrison  displayed  unusual 
gallantry — they  frequently  exposed  their  persons  above  the 
pickets,  to  insult  and  provoke  the  assailants  ;  and  judging 
from  the  facts  reported,  they  conducted  with  as  much  folly 
as  bravery. 

Col.  John  Wallace,  of  Cincinnati,  one  of  the  earliest  and 
bravest  of  the  Pioneers,  and  as  amiable  as  he  was  brave, 
was  in  the  fort  when  the  attack  was  made.  Although  the 
works  were  completely  surrounded  by  the  enemy,  the  Colo- 


H2  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

nel  volunteered  his  services  to  go  to  Cincinnati  for  a  rein- 
forcement. The  fort  stood  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Big 
Miami.  Late  in  the  night,  he  was  conveyed  across  the  river, 
in  a  canoe,  and  landed  on  the  opposite  shore.  Having 
passed  down  some  miles  below  the  fort,  he  swam  the  river, 
and  directed  his  course  for  Cincinnati.  On  his  way  down? 
the  next  day,  he  met  a  body  of  men,  from  that  place,  and 
from  Columbia,  proceeding  to  Colerain.  They  had  been 
informed  of  the  attack,  by  persons  hunting  in  the  neighbor- 
hood, who  were  sufficiently  near  the  fort  to  hear  the  firing 
when  it  began. 

He  joined  the  party,  and  led  them  to  the  station  by  the 
same  route  he  had  traveled  from  it;  but  before  they  arrived, 
the  Indians  had  taken  their  departure.  It  was  afterwards 
ascertained,  that  Mr.  Abner  Hunt,  a  respectable  citizen  of 
New  Jersey,  who  was  on  a  surveying  tour,  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Colerain,  at  the  time  of  the  attack,  was  killed  before 
he  could  reach  the  fort.  His  body  was  afterwards  found, 
shockingly  mangled. 

During  the  same  season,  a  large  party  of  Indians  invested 
Fort  Jefferson,  which  had  been  built  by  the  United  States' 
troops,  about  six  miles  south  of  Greenville,  now  the  county 
seat  of  Darke,  and  celebrated  as  the  place  where  General 
Wayne  negotiated  his  treaty  of  peace  and  boundaries,  with 
the  Indian  tribes,  in  1795.  Before  the  enemy  were  discov- 
ered by  the  garrison,  a  party  had  crept  up  and  secreted 
themselves  in  the  under-brush,  and  behind  logs  near  the 
Fort.  Having  gained  that  position,  they  attempted  to 
draw  out  some  of  the  garrison  in  pursuit  of  game,  by  imi- 
tating the  noise  of  turkeys,  with  perfect  exactness.  Major 
Shaylor,  the  commandant,  was  passionately  fond  of  hunt- 
ing, and,  not  dreaming  of  a  decoy,  hastened  out  in  pursuit 
of  the  game,  accompanied  by  his  son. 

As  they  approached  the  place  from  which  the  sound 
came,  the  savages  rose  and  tired.  The  son,  a  lad  of  fine 
promise,  fell;  the  Major  lied  to  the  garrison,  pursued  closely 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  113 

by  the  Indians,  who  felt  confident,  they  would  either  take 
him,  or  gain  possession  of  the  sally  gate,  when  opened  for 
his  reception.  They  were,  however,  disappointed.  He  en- 
tered, and  the  gate  was  closed  a  few  moments  before  they 
reached  it.  In  escaping  to  the  Fort,  he  was  wounded  by 
an  arrow,  in  the  back.  Had  this  been  the  only  penalty  of 
his  temerity,  he  might  have  been  thankful ;  but  the  loss  of 
a  son  of  great  promise,  sacrificed  by  his  own  folly,  rested 
on  his  memory,  if  not  on  his  conscience. 

It  would  be  a  tedious  undertaking,  were  it  practicable,  to 
detail  or  enumerate  the  hostile  movements  of  the  Indians, 
and  their  numberless  depredations.  During  the  whole  pro- 
gress of  the  war,  small  parties  were  constantly  lurking  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  white  settlements  and  stations,  watch- 
ing for  opportunities  to  plunder  and  murder.  They  came 
frequently  into  the  villages  by  night,  and  carried  off  horses 
and  other  property,  undiscovered.  These  depredations 
were  so  frequent,  that  the  inhabitants  were  constantly  on 
the  alert ;  and  found  it  necessary  to  keep  up  a  guard,  when 
engaged  in  clearing  and  cultivating  their  grounds.  It  was 
not  safe  to  venture  into  the  woods  unarmed ,  and  even  at 
Cincinnati,  in  sight  of  Fort  Washington,  it  was  found  pru- 
dent to  attend  church  on  the  Sabbath,  armed  and  prepared 
to  repel  an  attack. 

In  January,  1791,  President  Washington  laid  before  Con- 
gress, a  statement  of  the  condition  of  the  Western  country, 
accompanied  with  his  views  of  the  measures  proper  to  be 
taken  for  its  defence.  He  maintained,  that  it  was  an  im- 
portant branch  of  the  duty  of  the  General  Government,  to 
afford  to  the  frontier  settlers  all  reasonable  protection,  in 
the  enjoyment  of  their  just  rights,  both  of  person  and  pro- 
perty. He  urged  it  also,  as  a  matter  of  importance,  to  con- 
vince whomsoever  it  might  concern,  that  notwithstanding 
the  distance  of  the  field  of  action,  government  possessed 
power  to  preserve  peace  and  good  order  on  the  frontiers. 
He  maintained  that  it  was  true  economy  to  regulate  events, 
8 


114  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

instead  of  being  regulated  by  them;  and  to  provide  means 
necessary  to  do  so. 

After  submitting  to  their  consideration  a  plan  for  increas- 
ing the  regular  establishment,  should  that  course  be  thought 
expedient,  he  expressed  a  very  decided  opinion,  that  an- 
other expedition  against  the  Wabash  Indians  was  indis- 
pensable ;  that  affairs  could  not  remain  as  they  then  were 
— that  although  winter  imposed  peace  for  the  present;  yet, 
unless  the  attention  of  the  Indians  should  be  called  to  their 
own  country,  they  would,  on  the  opening  of  the  spring, 
spread  general  desolation  over  the  frontiers — that  the  In- 
dians on  the  Wabash  amounted  to  about  eleven  hundred 
warriors :  to  which  number  there  should  be  added  one 
thousand,  belonging  to  other  tribes  more  distant;  and  on 
that  estimate,  that  the  army  for  the  next  campaign  ought 
to  consist  of  three  thousand  well  armed  troops;  to  make  it 
superior  to  all  opposition,  and  prevent  the  repetition  of  the 
same  trouble  and  expense. 

A  few  days  after  this  message  had  been  sent  to  Con- 
gress, by  the  President,  he  communicated  to  them  further 
intelligence,  received  from  General  Putnam,  of  Marietta, 
and  Major  Zeigler,  of  Fort  Washington,  of  recent  depreda- 
tions committed  in  the  north-west.  He  also  laid  before 
them  a  statistical  statement,  prepared  with  great  care,  con- 
taining information  which  it  was  important  for  the  govern- 
ment to  know,  at  that  juncture.  From  that  tabular  state- 
ment it  appeared,  that  the  garrison  at  Fort  Harmar  then 
consisted  of  little  more  than  twenty  soldiers — that  the  en- 
tire number  of  men  in  the  Muskingum  settlements,  capable 
of  bearing  arms,  including  civil  and  military  officers,  did 
not  exceed  two  hundred  and  eighty-seven,  many  of  whom 
were  badly  armed — that  the  inhabitants  were  in  thi  most 
imminent  danger  of  being  destroyed,  should  the  enemy 
push  the  war  with  vigor,  during  the  winter.  It  also  ap- 
peared, that  at  Marietta  there  were  about  eighty  houses 
within  the  distance  of  one  mile;  and  a  few  scattered  cabins 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  115 

about  three  miles  up  the  river.  On  Duck  creek,  four  miles 
from  the  village,  there  was  a  set  of  mills;  and  there  was 
another  set  on  the  Muskingum,  two  miles  distant.  Twen- 
ty-two miles  up  that  river,  there  was  a  settlement,  consist- 
ing of  twenty  families.  On  Wolf  creek,  distant  two  miles, 
there  were  five  families,  and  a  set  of  mills.  On  the  Ohio, 
opposite  the  Little  Kenawha,  the  settlement  of  Belpre  com- 
menced, and  extended  down  the  river,  with  little  interrup- 
tion, twelve  miles,  and  contained  between  thirty  and  forty 
houses. 

That  concise  statement  exhibited  the  entire  population 
and  strength  of  the  Ohio  Company's  purchase,  as  it  then 
was.  It  was  also  stated,  that  a  few  weeks  before  that  doc- 
ument was  prepared,  the  Indians  had  attacked  and  broken 
up  a  new  settlement  at  the  Big  Bottom,  forty  miles  up  the 
Muskingum,  consisting  of  sixteen  men,  one  woman,  and 
two  children ;  all  of  whom  were  killed,  except  four  of  the 
men,  who  made  their  escape. 

The  impression  produced  on  the  minds  of  Congress  by 
these  and  similar  communications,  induced  them  promptly 
to  authorise  the  President  to  raise  an  army  of  three  thous- 
and men,  being  the  number  proposed,  and  to  place  it  under 
the  command  of  Governor  St.  Clair,  who  was  then  ap- 
pointed a  Major  General.  At  the  same  time,  with  a  view 
of  producing  immediate  relief,  they  authorised  the  President 
to  raise  a  corps  of  Kentucky  volunteers,  for  the  purpose  of 
destroying  the  towns  on  the  Wabash,  by  a  rapid  march, 
and  an  unexpected  attack. 

In  executing  that  trust,  the  President  appointed  General 
Charles  Scott  to  command  the  expedition ;  and  to  prevent 
the  delay  which  might  be  produced  by  distance,  and  by  the 
difficulty  of  communicating  with  the  Department,  through 
an  unsettled  wilderness,  he  appointed  a  board  of  advisers, 
consisting  of  Harry  Innes,  John  Brown,  Benjamin  Logan, 
and  Isaac  Shelby,  on  the   advice   of  any  three  of  whom 


16  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

General  Scott  was  authorised  to  act,  without  waiting  for 
special  directions  from  the  Secretary  of  War. 

The  troops  for  the  expedition  were  to  be  chosen  men, 
voluntarily  engaged  for  the  purpose,  whose  bravery  and 
skill  could  be  entirely  relied  on ;  and  the  detachment  was 
to  consist  of  such  a  number,  not  exceeding  seven  hundred 
and  fifty,  as  the  General  and  the  majority  of  his  advisers 
might  determine.  The  officers  were  to  be  selected  by  the 
General,  and  approved  by  a  majority  of  the  persons  before 
named.  The  troops  were  to  be  mounted,  armed  and  equip- 
ped, in  all  respects,  according  to  the  advice  of  the  commit- 
tee, and  were  placed  under  the  sole  command  of  General 
Scott,  holding  the  rank  of  a  Brigadier.  In  accordance  with 
this  authority  and  these  instructions,  the  detachment  was 
raised,  mounted,  and  equipped,  and  on  the  19th  of  May 
were  mustered,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Kentucky  river. 

On  the  23d  of  the  same  month,  they  marched  from  the 
bank  of  the  Ohio,  and  pressed  forward  with  the  utmost  in- 
dustry, directing  their  course  to  the  Ouiatanon  village.  On 
the  31st,  they  had  marched  one  hundred  and  thirty-five 
miles,  over  a  country  intersected  and  made  rough,  by  four 
branches  of  White  river,  and  by  other  smaller  streams, 
many  of  them  having  steep  muddy  banks.  During  the 
march,  rain  fell  in  torrents,  which  impeded  their  progress, 
wore  down  their  horses,  and  injured  their  provisions.  On 
the  morning  of  the  1st  of  June,  an  Indian  on  horseback  was 
discovered  at  some  distance  on  the  right.  Measures  were 
immediately  taken  to  capture  him,  but  without  success. 
The  General,  thus  finding  that  he  had  been  discovered  by 
the  enemy,  determined  to  advance  rapidly,  under  a  hope  of 
reaching  the  main  point  of  attack  that  day ;  though  unfor- 
tunately his  guides  were  strangers  to  the  region  of  country 
he  was  then  in. 

At  one  o'clock,  having  marched  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles  from  the  Ohio,  two  small  villages  were  discovered  on 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  117 

the  left,  at  two  and  four  miles  distance.  The  guides  then 
recognized  the  ground,  and  informed  the  General  that  the 
main  town  was  four  or  five  miles  in  front.  He  immedi- 
ately sent  a  detachment  of  sixty  mounted  infantry,  under 
Colonel  Hardin,  and  a  troop  of  light-horse  under  Captain 
McCoy,  to  attack  the  villages  on  the  left,  while  he  ad- 
vanced briskly,  with  the  main  body,  in  order  of  battle,  to 
the  chief  town  in  front. 

Before  the  troops  had  reached  it,  the  enemy  were  seen  in 
great  confusion,  endeavoring  to  make  their  escape  over  the 
river.  Five  canoes,  crowded  full  of  them  were  destroyed, 
and  all  who  were  in  them  perished ;  though  a  heavy  fire 
was  kept  up  on  the  assailants,  from  a  Kickapoo  village,  on 
the  opposite  bank.  The  river  at  that  point  being  too  high 
to  be  forded,  Colonel  Wilkinson  was  dispatched  to  a  ford, 
two  miles  above,  which  he  found  also  to' be  impassable. 
The  enemy  being  still  in  possession  of  the  Kickapoo  town, 
two  companies,  commanded  by  Captains  King  and  Logs- 
don,  were  dispatched,  with  orders  to  cross  the  river  below, 
and  take  it.  That  order  was  promptly  obeyed,  although 
some  of  the  men  were  compelled  to  swim  the  river,  while 
others  were  crossing  it  in  small  canoes.  This  movement 
was  so  entirely  unobserved,  and  unexpected  by  the  enemy, 
that  the  Kentuckians  had  posted  themselves  on  the  bank, 
before  they  were  discovered  by  the  Indians.  The  moment 
that  discovery  was  made,  the  enemy  abandoned  the  place. 

In  the  mean  time,  Colonel  Hardin  had  successfully  exe- 
cuted the  order  to  take  the  villages  on  the  left,  and  was  en- 
cumbered with  prisoners.  While  thus  embarrassed,  he  dis- 
covered a  stronger  village  still  further  to  the  left,  which  he 
attacked  and  carried,  and  then  joined  the  main  body,  be- 
fore sunset,  having  killed  six  warriors  and  taken  fifty-two 
prisoners. 

The  next  day,  Colonel  Wilkinson  marched  with  three 
hundred  and  sixty  men,  to  attack  the  important  village, 
Keth-ti-pe-can-wak,  which  he  took  and  destroyed,  with  the 


118  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

loss  of  only  three  men  wounded.  Many  of  the  inhabitants 
of  this  village  were  French,  who  were  enjoying  the  com- 
forts of  civilized  life;  and  from  letters  and  other  papers 
found  in  their  possession,  it  was  evident  they  were  in  cor- 
respondence, and  close  connection  with  the  leading  men  of 
Detroit.  The  village  consisted  of  seventy  houses;  many 
of  which  were  well  built  and  furnished.  These  were  all 
burnt,  with  a  large  quantity  of  corn,  peltry,  furniture,  and 
various  other  articles  of  property  of  much  value. 

On  the  4th  the  General  liberated  sixteen  of  the  weakest 
and  most  infirm  of  his  prisoners,  and  sent  them  with  a  talk 
to  the  Wabash  tribes.  The  motives  to  this  measure  were 
to  rid  the  army  of  a  heavy  incumbrance — to  gratify  the 
feelings  of  humanity,  and  at  the  same  time,  by  distracting 
the  councils  of  the  enemy,  to  favor  the  views  of  govern- 
ment. On  the  same  day,  after  having  burnt  the  towns  and 
villages,  cut  up  the  growing  corn,  and  destroyed  every  spe- 
cies of  property  within  their  reach,  they  began  their  march 
towards  the  rapids  of  the  Ohio,  and  on  the  14th  reached 
that  place,  having  accomplished  the  great  and  only  object 
of  the  expedition,  without  the  loss  of  a  single  man  killed, 
and  only  four  wounded — having  themselves  killed  thirty  - 
two  warriors,  taken  fifty-seven  prisoners,  and  destroyed 
much  valuable  property.  To  the  honor  of  the  volunteers, 
it  was  certified,  by  the  General,  that  not  a  single  act  of 
inhumanity  had  marked  their  conduct,  during  the  cam- 
paign. 

After  the  return  of  this  gallant  little  army,  the  General 
delivered  to  the  commandant,  at  Fort  Steuben,  forty-one 
prisoners,  for  which  he  took  a  receipt;  and  which,  with  the 
sixteen  liberated,  swelled  the  number  of  his  captives  to 
fifty-seven. 

The  brilliant  success  of  this  rapid  expedition,  commenced 
and  terminated  in  less  than  thirty  da \  B,  induced  General 
St.  Clair,  under  the  discretionary  power  he  had  received 
from  the  President,  to  organize  another,  against   the  same 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  H9 

towns,  without  loss  of  time.  With  that  view,  he  commis- 
sioned Colonel  James  Wilkinson,  who  had  just  signalized 
himself  under  General  Scott,  to  raise  a  corps  of  mounted 
Kentucky  volunteers,  to  consist  of  not  less  than  five,  nor 
more  than  six  hundred,  rank-and-file,  and  to  lead  them, 
under  his  own  command,  against  the  Wabash  Indians,  to 
complete  the  work,  which  the  troops  under  General  Scott, 
had  so  successfully  begun.  The  commission  was  accepted 
about  the  last  of  June ;  and  before  the  close  of  the  succeeding 
month  of  July,  the  Colonel  reported  himself  to  Governor  St. 
Clair,  at  Fort  Washington,  with  a  detachment  of  five  hun- 
dred and  fifty  volunteers,  well  mounted,  equipped,  and 
organized,  ready  to  receive  and  execute  his  orders. 

On  the  recommendation  of  Colonel  Wilkinson,  Messrs. 
Caldwell  and  McDowell  were  appointed  Majors,  and  such 
other  officers  were  selected  and  commissioned,  as  the  ser- 
vice required.  On  the  1st  of  August,  the  detachment  left 
Fort  Washington,  and  took  up  its  march  for  the  Wabash 
towns.  For  the  purpose  of  misleading  the  enemy,  the 
course  of  the  army  was  at  first  directed  to  the  Miami  vil- 
lages, on  the  St.  Joseph's;  and  that  direction  was  continued 
till  the  fourth  day,  when,  having  advanced  seventy  miles 
from  Fort  Washington,  the  course  was  changed  to  the 
north-west.  By  that  plan,  the  object  in  view  was  conceal- 
ed, in  part,  by  avoiding  the  common  hunting  grounds  of  the 
enemy,  and  also  the  paths  they  were  wont  to  travel. 

The  country,  over  which  the  detachment  marched, 
abounded  in  ponds  and  swamps,  by  which  their  progress 
was  greatly  checked;  and  in  consequence  of  which,  it  was 
found  necessary,  frequently,  to  change  their  course.  This 
not  only  caused  delay  and  loss  of  time,  but  increased  the 
chances  of  being  discovered  by  the  enemy,  before  reaching 
the  point  of  destination.  Soon  after  crossing  a  branch  of 
the  Calumet  river,  the  advanced  guard  discovered  and  fired 
on  a  small  party  of  Indians,  one  of  whom  they  succeeded 
in  taking  prisoner.     He  proved  to  be  a  Delaware,  residing 


120  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

near  the  site  of  one  of  the  villages  destroyed  by  General 
Harmar,  the  preceding  fall;  which,  as  he  informed  the  Col- 
onel, was  about  thirty  miles  distant.  On  receiving  that 
information,  the  course  of  the  detachment  was  directed 
more  to  the  west.  On  the  6th  of  the  month,  they  crossed 
a  road  very  much  used,  where  twenty  men  were  left  by 
the  Colonel,  in  ambush,  to  watch  and  intercept  any  party 
of  the  enemy  that  might  casually  pass;  and  prevent  as 
long  as  possible,  the  discovery  of  his  real  object.  That 
party  soon  discovered  four  warriors  encamped  on  the  right, 
one  of  whom  they  killed.  On  the  7th,  the  army  struck  the 
Wabash,  near  the  mouth  of  Eel  river;  being  the  very  spot 
for  which  the  Colonel  had  aimed,  from  the  commencement 
of  his  march.  The  troops  then  crossed  the  river  in  view 
of  the  town,  when  a  general  charge  was  ordered,  and 
obeyed  with  such  alacrity,  that  the  men  forced  their  way 
over  every  obstacle.  The  enemy  were  unable  to  resist — 
six  warriors  were  killed,  and  unfortunately  two  squaws, 
and  a  child,  shared  the  same  fate.  Thirty-four  prisoners 
were  taken,  and  an  American,  held  in  captivity,  was  re- 
leased. The  American  loss  was  two  men  killed,  and  one 
wounded. 

This  town  extended  along  the  river  three  miles.  The 
gallant  little  army  encamped  in  it  that  night,  and  the  next 
morning  cut  up  the  corn,  scarcely  in  the  milk,  and  burnt  the 
buildings.  Having  left  two  squaws  and  a  child,  with  a 
short  talk  for  the  Indians,  the  army  took  up  its  march  for 
the  "  Kickapoo  town  in  the  prairie."  Not  being  able  to 
discover  any  path,  in  the  direct  course  to  that  town,  they 
marched  by  the  road  leading  to  Tippecanoe.  After  much 
labor,  difficulty  and  fatigue,  which  exhausted  the  men  and 
wore  down  their  horses,  they  reached  that  village,  which  in 
the  morning  had  been  occupied  by  the  enemy,  but  was 
abandoned  as  the  army  approached. 

After  the  destruction  of  this  town,  by  General  Scott,  in 
June,  the  Indians  returned  and  replanted  their  corn   and 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  12l 

pulse,  as  they  had  done  in  other  places,  which  had  grown 
rapidly,  and  were  in  a  flourishing  state.  For  the  purpose  of 
refreshing  the  horses,  and  giving  time  to  cut  down  the  corn, 
the  Colonel  determined  to  halt  till  morning,  and  then  renew 
his  march  for  the  "  Kickapoo  town,  in  the  prairie."  In  the 
course  of  the  day  he  had  discovered  some  uneasiness  and 
murmuring  among  the  men,  which,  on  enquiry,  he  found 
proceeded  from  a  reluctance  to  advance  further  into  the 
enemy's  country. 

This  led  to  the  examination  of  the  supplies,  etc.  of  the 
detachment,  when  it  appeared,  that  two  hundred  and  sev- 
enty horses  were  lame,  and  that  there  remained  but  five 
day's  provision  for  the  men.  Under  these  circumstances, 
the  Colonel  was  compelled,  reluctantly,  to  abandon  his  de- 
sign against  the  Kickapoos,  in  the  prairie.  He  marched, 
however,  against  a  town  of  the  same  nation  situated  about 
three  leagues  west.  As  he  advanced  to  that  town,  the  ene- 
my made  some  show  of  fighting,  but  fled  at  his  approach. 
The  town,  consisting  of  thirty  houses,  was  destroyed,  with 
a  considerable  quantity  of  corn  in  the  milk;  and  the  same 
day  the  troops  moved  to  Ouiatanon,  where  they  forded  the 
Wabash,  and  proceeded  to  the  site  of  the  village  which  had 
been  destroyed  by  General  Scott,  on  the  margin  of  the 
prairie,  where  they  encamped.  The  corn,  which  had  been 
re-planted  at  that  town,  and  was  in  a  high  state  of  cultiva- 
tion, was  again  destroyed.  On  the  12th,  the  march  was 
resumed,  and  continued  till  the  21st,  when  the  troops  arrived 
at  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio,  having  marched,  by  accurate  com- 
putation, four  hundred  and  fifty-one  miles  from  Fort  Wash- 
ington. 

Great  praise  was  awarded  to  the  whole  detachment,  for 
their  perseverance  and  bravery,  and  special  notice  was  ta- 
ken of  Majors  McDowell  and  Caldwell,  and  of  Colonel 
Russell,  who  led  the  advance,  in  the  character  of  a  volun- 
teer, without  a  commission.  The  thanks  of  the  commander 
were  also  given  to  Major  Adair,  and  Captain  Parker,  who 


122  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

acted  immediately  about  his  person,  and  rendered  the  most 
prompt  and  energetic  services. 

While  these  military  movements  under  Scott,  and  under 
Wilkinson,  were  going  on  against  the  Wabash  Indians,  the 
War  Department  was  engaged  in  raising  the  army  of  three 
thousand  men,  ordered  by  Congress,  of  which  Governor  St. 
Clair  had  been  appointed  commander,  with  the  rank  of 
Major  General. 

On  the  28th  the  General  left  Philadelphia,  for  Fort 
Pitt,  where  he  arrived  on  the  sixteenth  of  April,  and 
from  thence  proceeded  by  the  way  of  Lexington,  to  Fort 
Washington,  which  he  reached  on  the  15th  of  May.  The 
garrison  at  that  place,  as  appears  from  an  official  report, 
consisted  of  seventy-five  non-commissioned  officers  and 
privates,  fit  for  duty.  The  garrison  at  Fort  Harmar,  con- 
sisted of  forty-five ;  the  garrison  at  Fort  Steuben,  of  sixty- 
one,  and  the  garrison  at  Fort  Knox,  of  eighty-three  men. 
The  first  regiment  of  United  States'  troops,  of  which  these 
garrisons  were  component  parts,  amounting  in  the  whole  to 
two  hundred  and  ninety  nine,  rank  and  file,  were  collected 
at  Cincinnati,  on  the  15th  of  July. 

General  Butler,  who  was  the  second  in  command,  was 
charged  with  the  arrangements  necessary  for  the  recruiting 
service,  and  having  established  a  rendezvous  at  Baltimore, 
proceeded  to  Pittsburgh. 

The  troops  at  Fort  Washington,  on  the  last  of  August, 
amounted  to  about  two  thousand  non-commissioned  officers 
and  privates.  By  order  of  the  Commander-in-chief,  they 
marched  from  thence  to  Ludlow's  station,  five  miles  in  ad- 
vance of  the  Fort,  where  they  encamped  till  the  17th  of 
September,  waiting  for  reinforcements  and  supplies.  On 
that  day  they  numbered  two  thousand  three  hundred  rank 
and  file;  and  on  the  same  day  marehed  from  the  station 
to  the  Big  Miami  river,  where  they  halted  and  built  Fort 
Hamilton,  which  gave  name  to  the  county  seat  of  Butler. 

From  that  post,  the  army  marched,  under   the  command 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  igg 

of  General  Butler,  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  October. 
They  were  compelled  to  move  slowly,  and  halt  frequently, 
for  the  provisions  and  other  supplies  of  the  army. 

On  the  24th  they  halted  for  several  days,  and  erected  a 
fort,  which  was  called  Fort  Jefferson.  During  this  time,  a 
body  of  the  militia,  amounting  to  three  hundred,  deserted, 
and  returned  to  their  homes.  The  supplies  for  the  army 
being  still  in  the  rear,  and  the  General  entertaining  fears 
that  the  deserters  might  meet  and  seize  them  for  their  own 
use,  determined,  very  reluctantly,  to  send  back  the  first  re- 
giment, for  the  double  purpose  of  bringing  up  the  provisions 
and,  if  possible,  of  overtaking  and  arresting  the  deserters. 

Having  made  that  arrangement,  the  army  resumed  its 
march,  and  on  the  3rd  of  November,  arrived  at  a  creek  run- 
ning to  the  south  west,  which  was  supposed  to  be  the  St. 
Mary's,  one  of  the  principal  branches  of  the  Maumee,  but 
was  afterwards  ascertained  to  be  a  branch  of  the  Wabash. 
It  being  then  late  in  the  afternoon,  and  the  army  much  fa- 
tigued by  a  laborious  march,  they  were  encamped  on  a 
commanding  piece  of  ground,  having  the  creek  in  front. 

It  was  the  intention  of  the  General  to  occupy  that  posi- 
tion till  the  first  regiment,  with  the  provisions,  should  come 
up.  He  proposed  on  the  next  day,  to  commence  a  work  of 
defence,  agreeably  to  a  plan  concerted  between  himself  and 
Major  Ferguson,  but  he  was  not  permitted  to  do  either ;  for 
on  the  next  morning,  November  4th,  half  an  hour  before 
sunrise,  the  men  having  been  just  dismissed  from  parade,  an 
attack  was  made  on  the  militia  posted  in  front,  who  gave 
way  and  rushed  back  into  the  camp,  throwing  the  army  into 
a  state  of  disorder,  from  which  it  could  not  be  recovered,  as 
the  Indians  followed  close  at  their  heels.  They  were,  how- 
ever, checked  a  short  time  by  the  fire  of  the  first  line,  but 
immediately  a  very  heavy  fire  was  commenced  on  that  line, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  it  was  extended  to  the  second. 

In  each  case,  the  great  weight  of  the  fire  was  directed  to 
the  centre,  where  the  artillery  was  placed;  from  which  the 


124 


BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 


men  were  frequently  driven  with  great  slaughter.  In  that 
emergency  resort  was  had  to  the  bayonet.  Colonel  Darke 
was  ordered  to  make  the  charge  with  a  part  of  the  second 
line,  which  order  was  executed  with  great  spirit.  The  In- 
dians instantly  gave  way,  and  were  driven  back  several 
hundred  yards,  but  for  want  of  a  sufficient  number  of  rifle- 
men to  preserve  the  advantage  gained,  the  enemy  soon 
renewed  their  attack,  and  the  American  troops,  in  turn, 
were  forced  to  give  way. 

At  that  instant,  the  Indians  entered  the  American  camp 
on  the  left,  having  forced  back  the  troops  stationed  at  that 
point.     Another  charge  was  then  ordered  and  made  by  the 
battalions  of  Majors  Butler  and  Clark,  with  great  success. 
Several  other  charges  were  afterwards  made,  and  always 
with  equal  effect.     These  attacks,  however,  were  attended 
with  a  very  heavy  loss  of  men,  and  particularly  of  officers. 
In  the  charge  made  by  the  second  regiment,  Major  But- 
ler was  dangerously  wounded ;  and  every  officer  of  that 
regiment  fell,  except  three,  one  of  whom  was  shot  through 
the  body.     The  artillery  being  silenced,  and  all  the  officers 
belonging  to  it  killed,  but  Captain  Ford,  who  was  danger- 
ously wounded,  and  half  the  army  having  fallen,  it  became 
necessary  to  gain  the  road,  if  possible,  and  make  a  retreat. 
For  that  purpose,  a  successful  charge  was  made  on  the 
enemy,  as  if  to  turn  their  right  flank,  but  in  reality,  to  gain 
the  road,  which  was  effected.     The  militia  then  commenced 
a   retreat,   followed   by  the   United   States'  troops,  Major 
Clark,  with  his  battalion,  covering  the  roar.     The  retreat, 
as  might  be  expected,  soon  became  a  flight.     The  camp 
was  abandoned,  and  so  was  the  artillery,  for  the  want  of 
horses  to  remove  it.     The  men  threw  away  their  arms  ami 
accoutrements,  even  after  the  pursuit  had  ceased,  which 
was  not  continued  more  than  four  miles.     The  road  was 
almost  covered  with  those  articles,  for  a  great  distance. 

All  the  horses  of  the   general  were  killed,  and  he  was 
mounted  on  a  broken  down  pack-horse,  that  could  scarcely 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  125 

be  forced  out  of  a  walk.  It  was  therefore  impossible  for 
him  to  get  forward  in  person,  to  command  a  halt,  till  regu- 
larity could  be  restored,  and  the  orders  which  he  dispatched 
by  others,  for  that  purpose,  were  wholly  unattended  to. 
The  rout  continued  to  Fort  JefFerson,  where  they  arrived 
about  dark,  twenty-seven  miles  from  the  battle-ground. 
The  retreat  began  at  half  past  nine  in  the  morning,  and  as 
the  battle  commenced  half  an  hour  before  sunrise,  it  must 
have  lasted  three  hours,  during  which  time,  with  only  one 
exception,  the  troops  behaved  with  great  bravery.  This 
fact  accounts  for  the  immense  slaughter  which  took  place. 

Among  the  killed,  were  Major  General  Butler,  Colonel 
Oldham,  Major  Ferguson,  Major  Hart,  and  Major  Clark. 
Among  the  wounded,  were  Colonel  Sargeant,  the  Adjutant 
General,  Colonel  Darke,  Colonel  Gibson,  Major  Butler,  and 
Viscount  Malartie,  who  served  in  the  character  of  an  aid. 
In  addition  to  these,  the  list  of  officers  killed  contains  the 
names  of  Captains  Bradford,  Phelon,  Kirkwood,  Price,  Van 
Swearingen,  Tipton,  Purdy,  Smith,  Piatt,  Gaither,  Crebbs, 
and  Newman;  Lieutenants  Spear,  Warren,  Boyd,  McMath, 
Burgess,  Kelso,  Read,  Little,  Hopper,  and  Lickins ;  also, 
Ensigns  Cobb,  Balch,  Chase,  Turner,  Wilson,  Brooks, 
Beatty,  and  Purdy;  also,  Quartermasters  Reynolds  and 
Ward,  Adjutant  Anderson  and  Doctor  Grasson.  And  in 
addition  to  the  wounded  officers  whose  names  are  men- 
tioned above,  the  official  list  contains  the  names  of  Captains 
Doyle,  Trueman,  Ford,  Buchanan,  Darke,  and  Hough;  also 
of  Lieutenants  Greaton,  Davidson,  De  Butts,  Price,  Morgan, 
McCrea,  Lysle,  and  Thompson;  also,  Adjutants  Whistler, 
and  Crawford,  and  Ensign  Bines. 

The  melancholy  result  of  that  disastrous  day  wTas  felt 
and  lamented  by  all,  who  had  sympathy  for  private  distress, 
or  public  misfortune. 

The  only  charge  alledged  by  the  General  against  his  army, 
was  want  of  discipline,  which  they  could  not  have  acquired, 
during  the  short  time  they  had  been  in  the  service.     That 


126  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

defect  rendered  it  impossible,  when  they  were  thrown  into 
confusion,  to  restore  them  again  to  order,  and  is  the  chief 
reason  why  the  loss  fell  so  heavily  on  the  officers.  They 
were  compelled  to  expose  themselves  in  an  unusual  degTee 
in  their  efforts  to  rally  the  men,  and  remedy  the  want  of 
discipline.  In  that  duty,  the  General  set  the  example, 
though  worn  down  by  sickness,  and  suffering  under  a  pain- 
ful disease.  It  was  alledged  by  the  officers,  that  the  Indians 
far  outnumbered  the  American  troops.  That  conclusion 
was  drawn,  in  part,  from  the  fact,  that  they  outflanked  and 
attacked  the  American  lines  with  great  force,  at  the  same 
time,  on  every  side. 

When  the  fugitives  arrived  at  Fort  Jefferson,  they  found 
the  first  regiment,  which  was  just  returning  from  the  ser- 
vice on  which  it  had  been  sent,  without  either  overtaking 
the  deserters,  or  meeting  the  convoy  of  provisions.  The 
absence  of  that  regiment,  at  the  time  of  the  battle,  was  be- 
lieved by  some,  to  be  the  cause  of  the  defeat.  They  sup- 
posed, that  had  it  been  present,  the  Indians  would  have 
been  defeated,  or  would  not  have  ventured  an  attack  at  the 
time  they  made  it;  but  General  St.  Clair  expressed  great 
doubt  on  that  subject.  He  seemed  to  think  it  uncertain, 
judging  from  the  superior  number  of  the  enemy,  whether 
he  ought  to  consider  the  absence  of  that  corps  from  the 
field  of  action,  as  fortunate  or  otherwise.  On  the  whole,  he 
seemed  to  think  it  fortunate,  as  he  very  much  doubted, 
whether,  if  it  had  been  in  the  action,  the  fortune  of  the  day 
would  have  been  changed ;  and  if  it  had  not,  the  triumph  of 
the  enemy  would  have  been  more  complete,  and  the  coun- 
try would  have  been  left  destitute  of  the  means  of  defence. 

As  soon  as  the  troops  reached  Fort  Jefferson,  it  became 
a  question  whether  they  ought  to  continue  at  that  placi ,  or 
return  to  Fort  Washington.  For  the  purpose  of  determin- 
ing that  question,  the  General  called  on  the  surviving  field 
officers,  to  wit:  Colonel  Darke,  Major  I  I.initramck,  Major 
Zciglcr,  and  Major  Gaithcr,  and  also  the  Adjutant  General, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  127 

Colonel  Sargeant,  for  their  advice,  as  to  what  would  be  the 
proper  course  to  be  pursued,  under  existing  circumstances. 
After  discussing  the  subject,  they  reported  it  to  be  their 
unanimous  opinion,  that  the  troops  could  not  be  accommo- 
dated in  the  Fort;   that  they  could  not  be  supplied  with 
provisions,  at  that  place ;  and  as  it  was  known  there  were 
provisions  on   the   road,  at  the   distance  of  one,  or  two 
marches,  it  would  be  proper,  without  loss  of  time,  to  pro- 
ceed and  meet  them.     That  advice  was  adopted,  and  the 
army  put  in  motion  again  at  10  o'clock,  and  marched  all 
night.     On   the   succeeding  day,  they  met  a  quantity  of 
flour,  and  on  the  day  after,  a  drove  of  cattle,  which  having 
been  disposed  of,  as  the  wrants  of  the  troops  required,  the 
march  was  continued  to  Fort  Washington. 

The  loss  sustained  by  the  country,  from  the  fall  of  so 
many  gallant  officers  and  men,  wras  most  seriously  re- 
gretted. General  Butler  and  Major  Ferguson,  were  spoken 
of  with  peculiar  interest.  The  public  feeling  was,  how- 
ever, in  some  measure  alleviated,  by  the  fact,  that  those 
brave  men,  officers  and  privates,  fell  covered  with  honor, 
in  defending  the  cause  of  their  country. 

The  principal  complaint  made  by  the  Commander-in- 
chief  was,  that  some  of  his  orders,  of  great  consequence, 
given  to  Colonel  Oldham,  over  night,  wrere  not  executed; 
and  that  some  very  material  intelligence,  communicated  by 
Captain  Hough,  to  General  Butler,  in  the  course  of  the 
night,  before  the  action,  was  not  imparted  to  him;  and  that 
he  did  not  hear  of  it,  till  his  arrival  at  Fort  Washington. 

It  is  important  to  the  fame  of  the  commanding  General, 
that  in  consequence  of  the  almost  treasonable  negligence 
of  the  agents  of  government,  whose  duty  it  was  to  furnish 
supplies,  the  army  had  been  for  many  days  on  short  allow- 
ance, and  were  so  at  the  time  of  the  battle.  That  fact  had 
made  it  indispensably  necessary,  either  to  retreat,  or  send 
back  the  first  regiment,  which  was  the  flower  of  the  army, 
to  bring  up  the  provisions  and  military  stores.     The  latter 


128  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

alternative  was  chosen,  and  in  the  absence  of  that  corps, 
the  attack  was  made. 

In  regard  to  the  negligence  charged  on  the  War  Depart- 
ment, it  is  a  well  authenticated  fact,  that  boxes  and  pack- 
ages were  so  carelessly  put  up  and  marked,  that  during  the 
action  a  box  was  opened  marked  "  flints,"  which  was  found 
to  contain  gun-locks.  Several  mistakes  of  the  same  char- 
acter were  discovered,  as  for  example,  a  keg  of  powder 
marked  "  for  the  infantry,"  was  found  to  be  damaged  can- 
non powder,  that  could  scarcely  be  ignited. 

Under  all  these  disadvantages,  it  was  generally  believed 
by  candid  intelligent  men,  that  the  commanding  General 
was  not  justly  liable  to  much  censure,  if  any.  With  one 
exception,  at  the  commencement  of  the  action,  the  troops 
behaved  with  great  bravery.  They  maintained  their  ground 
for  three  tedious  hours,  in  one  uninterrupted  conflict  with  a 
superior  force  ;  nor  did  they  attempt  to  leave  the  field,  till 
it  was  covered  with  the  bodies  of  their  companions,  nor 
until  further  efforts  were  unavailing,  and  a  retreat  was 
ordered. 

The  General,  less  anxious  for  himself  than  for  others, 
was  the  last  to  leave  the  ground,  after  the  retreat  had  been 
ordered.  For  some  time  after  the  disaster,  he  was  univer- 
sally censured;  but  when  a  thorough  investigation  had 
been  made  by  a  committee  of  Congress,  of  which  Mr.  Giles, 
of  Virginia,  was  the  chairman,  it  was  found  that  the  cam- 
paign had  been  conducted  with  skill  and  personal  bravery; 
and  that  the  defeat  was  chiefly  owing  to  the  want  of  disci- 
pline in  the  militia,  and  to  the  negligence  of  those  whose 
duty  it  was  to  procure  and  forward  the  provisions  and  mili- 
tary stores,  necessary  for  the  expedition. 

After  the  publication  of  that  report,  the  Secretary  of  War, 
believing  himself  to  be  injured,  addressed  a  letter  to  Con- 
gress, complaining  that  injustice  had  been  done  him  by  the 
committee;  in  consequence  of  which  the  report  was  re- 
committed to  the  same  committee,  who,  after  hearing  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  129 

statements  and  explanations  of  the  Secretary,  and  recon- 
sidering the  whole  matter,  re-affirmed  their  first  report. 

In  the  course  of  the  next  season,  an  attempt  was  made 
to  open  a  negotiation  with  the  Indians,  for  the  purpose  of 
effecting  a  general  peace ;  but  without  success.  Colonel 
Hardin,  and  Major  Trueman,  who  went  on  that  embassy 
with  a  flag  from  Fort  Washington,  were  barbarously  mur- 
dered. 

It  is  stated  in  a  late  publication,  that  those  officers  were 
sent  out  by  General  Wayne,  in  succession,  with  flags  to 
the  enemy,  by  whom  they  were  assassinated;  but  it  ap- 
pears that  they  went  from  Fort  Washington  with  the  same 
flag,  on  one  and  the  same  embassy,  in  the  summer  of  1792, 
while  the  garrison  was  commanded  by  General  Wilkinson. 
General  Wayne  did  not  arrive  at  Cincinnati,  till  the  close 
of  the  summer  of  1793,  and  could  not  have  had  an  agency 
in  the  arrangements  for  fitting  out  the  mission. 

The  discrepancies  which  have  appeared  as  to  the  time, 
manner,  and  circumstances,  of  that  unfortunate  embassy, 
are  somewhat  remarkable.  In  a  former  publication,  the 
writer  of  this  article  fell  into  one  of  those  mistakes,  which 
was,  however,  soon  after  discovered  and  corrected. 

The  most  material  facts  of  the  case  are  these.  On  the 
3d  of  April,  1792,  eight  days  before  General  Wayne  was 
appointed  to  the  command  of  the  Western  army,  Major 
Trueman,  being  at  the  seat  of  government,  was  appointed 
by  the  President  to  negotiate  a  treaty  with  the  Western 
Indians,  and  on  the  same  day  received  his  instructions  from 
the  Secretary  of  War,  with  an  order  to  proceed  to  Fort 
Washington,  and  disclose  to  the  commandant,  Colonel  Wil- 
kinson, the  object  of  his  mission;  who  would  concert 
with  him  the  proper  means  to  carry  it  into  execution.  On 
the  arrival  of  Major  Trueman  at  Fort  Washington,  Colonel 
Wilkinson,  who  had,  in  the  interval,  been  promoted  to  the 
rank  of  a  Brigadier  General,  saw  proper  to  associate  Colonel 
9 


130  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Hardin  with  Major  Trueman,  and  to  send  them  both  on  the 
embassy. 

They  left  the  fort  some  time  in  June,  with  a  servant  and 
a  guide,  and  proceeded  on  their  way  to  the  Indian  towns. 
On  the  3d  of  July  following,  Colonel  Vigo  arrived  from 
Vincennes,  with  information  brought  to  that  place,  by  a 
We  a  chief,  that  four  men,  who  had  gone  to  the  Indian 
country,  from  an  American  fort,  had  been  fired  on  by  a 
party  of  Indians ;  that  three  of  them  were  killed  on  the  spot, 
and  the  fourth,  who  carried  a  flag,  and  had  papers  in  his  pos- 
session, was  taken  prisoner,  but  was  killed  on  the  next  day. 
It  was  further  stated,  that  the  papers  were  taken  by  the 
Indians,  to  a  white  man  who  could  read,  and  wrho  informed 
them  that  one  of  the  papers  was  a  long,  good  talk,  from  a 
great  chief;  on  which  they  expressed  sorrow  for  what  they 
had  done. 

As  the  embassy  from  Fort  Washington,  with  a  flag  and 
a  talk,  had  set  out  for  the  Indian  country  a  short  time  be- 
fore, no  doubt  was  entertained  of  the  fact,  that  those  brave 
officers,  Hardin  and  Trueman,  with  their  attendants,  one 
of  whom  was  a  son  of  Mr.  A.  Freeman,  of  Cincinnati,  had 
been  treacherously  and  barbarously  murdered. 

That  conclusion  was  soon  confirmed  by  some  prisoners, 
who  escaped  from  the  Indians,  and  came  into  Fort  Wash- 
ington, with  the  same  intelligence.  Although  the  informa- 
tion thus  received  settled  the  fact,  conclusively,  that  the 
American  commissioners  and  their  attendants  had  been 
cruelly  murdered,  yet  various  rumors  were  in  circulation 
as  to  the  manner  in  which  the  crime  had  been  perpetrated. 

It  is  highly  probable  that  the  report  of  the  Wea  chief  waa 
substantially  correct.  It  was  certainly  more  plausible  than 
the  foolish  tale,  recited  by  William  May,  in  his  deposition, 
taken  by  General  Wayne,  at  Pittsburgh,  that  Major  True- 
man,  in  order  to  allay  the  fears  of  two  Indians  whom 
he  fell  in  with,  on  his  journey,  permitted  them  to  tie  him, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  131 

his  servant,  and  a  lad  who  accompanied  him,  during  the 
night;  and  as  a  matter  of  course,  to  murder  them  all  be- 
fore morning. 

It  seems  to  be  a  well  authenticated  fact,  that  after  Colo- 
nel Hardin  was  selected  to  accompany  Trueman,  he  ex- 
pressed his  conviction  confidentially  to  a  friend,  Captain 
James  Ferguson,  of  Cincinnati,  that  the  Indians  would  vio- 
late the  flag  and  assassinate  him,  assigning  as  a  reason 
that  they  had  long  feared  and  hated  him. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Situation  of  affairs  on  the  Frontier. — General  Wayne  appointed  to  the  com- 
mand.— Gallant  engagement  of  Major  Adair  with  the  Indians. — Commis- 
sioners appointed  to  treat  with  the  North-western  tribes. — Their  instruc- 
tions.— Their  negotiations. — Improper  interference  of  British  officers  and 
agents. — Failure  of  the  negotiation. 

The  campaigns  of  Harmar  and  St.  Clair,  and  the  inter- 
mediate expeditions  of  Scott  and  Wilkinson,  inflamed  the 
rage  and  malice  of  the  savages  to  the  highest  pitch ;  and 
prompted  them  to  fill  the  country  with  marauding  parties, 
whose  depredations  and  cruelties  were  most  distressing. 

At  that  period  the  public  service  rendered  it  necessary  to 
keep  up  a  constant  communication  between  Fort  Wash- 
ington, the  head-quarters  of  the  army,  and  the  advanced 
posts,  for  the  purpose  of  conveying  supplies,  or  intelli- 
gence ;  sometimes  by  small  parties,  and  often  by  single 
individuals,  who  were  necessarily  exposed  to  the  attacks  of 
those  wandering  savages. 

While  the  army  was  on  the  frontier,  the  main  body  of 
the  Indians  were  in  its  vicinity,  watching  its  movements, 
and  seeking  opportunities  to  harass  and  annoy  it ;  yet  at 
the  same  time,  they  had  parties  incessantly  lurking  about 
the  villages  and  stations,  and  watching  the  roads  and 
paths,  leading  from  one  post  and  station  to  another.  The 
attacks  of  those  parties  were  frequent  and  extremely  an- 
noying, and  were  attended  with  serious  losses,  both  of  lift 
and  property.  They  were,  however,  always  repelled  with 
spirit,  and  most  frequently  with  success.  On  some  occa- 
sions, the  assailants  suffered  severely,  and  had  cause  to 
regret  their  temerity. 


BURNET'S  NOTES. 


133 


Such  being  the  state  of  affairs  on  the  frontier,  President 
Washington  selected  Anthony  Wayne,  of  Revolutionary 
memory,  to  take  command  of  the  army ;  and  for  that  pur- 
pose, in  April,  1792,  he  was  nominated  and  appointed  a 
Major  General.  Being  aware  of  some  of  the  causes  of  the 
failure  of  the  campaigns,  under  Harmar  and  St.  Clair,  and 
particularly  that  those  officers  had  been  ordered  by  the 
War  Department,  to  advance  prematurely  into  the  Indian 
country,  he  accepted  the  appointment,  with  an  express 
stipulation,  that  he  should  not  be  required  to  march  into 
the  wilderness,  till  the  army  was  full,  and  so  far  disciplined 
as  to  justify  him  in  assuming  the  responsibility,  to  which 
such  a  movement  would  subject  him. 

The  misfortunes  of  those  who  preceded  him,  were  known. 
He  had  investigated  their  causes,  and  ascertained  that  they 
were  occasioned,  principally,  by  a  want  of  discipline,  and  a 
want  of  the  material,  necessary  for  an  army.  He  had  seen 
two  of  his  Revolutionary  associates  censured,  the  one  for  a 
total  defeat;  and  the  other  for  heavy  losses,  under  circum- 
stances, which  neither  skill,  nor  bravery,  could  have  pre- 
vented. 

With  these  lessons  before  him,  he  determined  to  avoid 
the  rock,  on  which  they  had  made  shipwreck,  and  therefore 
accepted  the  appointment,  on  the  condition  before  stated. 
A  few  days  after  this  appointment,  James  Wilkinson,  then 
a  Lieutenant  Colonel  in  the  army,  was  promoted  to  the 
rank  of  a  Brigadier,  and  became  the  second  officer  in  com- 
mand. This  organization  having  been  made,  measures 
were  immediately  commenced,  to  recruit  the  army,  and 
perfect  the  arrangements  necessary  for  the  approaching 
campaign. 

While  these  measures  were  in  progress,  information 
was  received  at  the  War  Department,  that  on  the  6th  of 
November,  1792,  a  detachment  of  mounted  Kentucky  vol- 
unteers, encamped  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  Fort  St. 
Clair,  twenty-six   miles  south  of  Greenville,  near  where 


134  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Eaton,  the  county  seat  of  Preble  now  stands,  were  suddenly 
and  violently  attacked  by  a  large  party  of  Indians,  who 
rushed  on  the  encampment  with  great  fury.  A  bloody  con- 
flict ensued,  during  which  Major  Adair,  the  commandant  of 
the  volunteers,  ordered  Lieutenant  Madison,  with  a  small 
party,  to  gain  the  right  flank  of  the  enemy,  if  possible,  and 
at  the  same  time  gave  an  order  for  Lieutenant  Hall  to 
attack  their  left ;  but  learning  that  that  officer  had  been 
slain,  the  Major,  with  about  twenty-five  of  his  men,  made 
the  attack  in  person,  with  a  view  of  sustaining  Lieutenant 
Madison. 

The  pressure  of  this  movement  caused  the  enemy  to  give 
way.  They  were  driven  about  six  hundred  yards,  through, 
and  beyond  the  American  camp,  where  they  made  a  stand, 
and  again  fought  desperately.  At  that  juncture,  about 
sixty  of  the  Indians  made  an  effort  to  turn  the  right  flank  of 
the  volunteers.  Major  Adair,  foreseeing  the  consequences 
of  that  manoeuvre,  found  it  necessary  to  order  a  retreat. 
That  movement  was  effected  with  regularity,  and,  as  was 
expected,  the  Indians  pursued  them  to  their  camp,  where  a 
halt  was  called,  and  another  severe  conflict  took  place,  in 
which  the  Indians  suffered  severely,  and  were  driven  from 
the  ground. 

After  the  conflict  was  over,  it  was  ascertained  that  Lieu- 
tenant Madison,  who  had  been  sent  to  the  right,  was 
wounded  on  the  first  attack,  and  obliged  to  retreat  into  the 
Fort,  leaving  two  of  his  command  dead  on  the  field.  It 
was  also  found,  that  the  Indians  had  carried  off  the  greater 
part  of  the  horses  belonging  to  the  detachment,  and  that 
six  of  the  volunteers  were  killed,  five  wounded,  and  four 
missing.  The  loss  of  the  enemy  was  about  the  same. 
Major  Adair,  the  commander  of  the  volunteers,  was  the 
same  officer,  who  afterwards  behaved  so  gallantly  under 
Harrison  and  Shelby,  in  the  north,  and  under  Jackson,  in 
Florida  and  Louisiana. 

In  the  spring  following,  the  arrangements  for  the  cam- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  135 

paign  still  going  on,  and  before  much  progress  had  been 
made,  a  Board  of  Commissioners,  consisting  of  Benjamin 
Lincoln,  Beverly  Randolph,  and  Timothy  Pickering,  was 
appointed  by  the  President,  and  vested  with  ample  powers 
to  negotiate  a  treaty  of  peace  and  boundaries,  with  the 
North-western  tribes  of  Indians,  on  just  and  equitable  prin- 
ciples. From  the  high  character  of  the  Commissioners,  and 
the  liberal  offers  they  were  authorised  to  make,  it  was  con- 
fidently expected,  they  would  succeed  in  establishing  peace, 
which  would  supersede  the  necessity  of  a  campaign,  for 
which  the  War  Department  was  then  preparing. 

The  Commissioners  received  their  instructions  in  April, 
1793,  which  were  full  and  explicit,  and  enjoined  it  on  them, 
to  use  every  effort  in  their  power,  to  obtain  a  confirmation 
of  the  treaty  of  Fort  Harmar,  made  in  1789,  and  especially 
that  part  of  it  which  defined  the  boundaries,  and  ceded  to 
the  United  States  the  lands  lying  east,  south  and  west  of  a 
line  drawn  up  the  Cuyahoga  river,  from  its  mouth  to  the 
portage  of  the  Tuscarawas  branch  of  the  Muskingum  ; 
thence  down  that  branch  to  the  forks;  thence  west,  to  the 
portage  of  the  Big  Miami,  called  Loramies;  thence  along 
that  portage  to  the  Miami,  sometimes  called  Ome,  or  Mau- 
mee,  and  down  the  same  to  its  mouth;  thence  along  the 
southern  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  to  the  beginning.  They  were 
also  instructed  to  secure  to  the  United  States  the  pre-emp- 
tion right  of  the  entire  Indian  country,  against  foreign  na- 
tions, as  well  as  individuals. 

In  consideration  of  those  concessions,  they  were  in- 
structed to  offer  the  Indians  the  guarantee  of  the  United 
States,  of  the  right  of  soil,  to  all  the  remaining  lands  in  that 
quarter,  and  the  relinquishment  of  the  places,  granted  in  the 
former  treaty,  for  trading  posts;  and  also,  the  abandon- 
ment of  any  military  posts  which  had  been  established 
without  the  boundaries  named  in  the  treaty.  In  addition 
to  this,  they  were  directed  to  offer  the  payment  of  fifty 


136  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

thousand  dollars  in  hand,  and  an  annuity  of  ten  thousand 
dollars,  forever. 

Having  received  those  instructions,  the  Commissioners 
proceeded,  without  delay,  to  Niagara,  by  Albany  and  Os- 
wego. On  their  arrival  at  that  place,  they  were  received 
by  Lieutenant  Governor  Simcoe,  with  much  friendship,  and 
pressed  to  take  lodgings  with  him,  at  Navy  Hall,  the  place 
of  his  residence,  which  offer  was  accepted,  with  proper 
acknowledgments.  On  the  30th  of  May,  they  wrote  to 
Colonel  McKee,  Superintendent  of  Indian  affairs,  advising 
him  of  their  appointment  to  hold  a  treaty  with  the  Indians 
at  Sandusky,  and  of  their  arrival  at  Niagara,  on  their  way 
to  that  place.  They  politely  requested  his  aid,  and  desired 
him  to  make  known  to  the  Indians,  that  they  had  arrived, 
and  would  meet  them  at  Sandusky  by  the  last  of  June. 
General  Chapin,  Superintendent  of  the  Six  Nations,  was 
invited  to  attend  the  Commissioners,  during  the  treaty  at 
Sandusky,  which  he  agreed  to  do,  and  was  promised  a  rea- 
sonable compensation  for  his  time  and  services. 

On  the  7th  of  June,  they  addressed  a  note  to  Governor 
Simcoe,  suggesting  the  great  importance  of  their  mission, 
and  the  difficulties  they  apprehended  from  the  existence  of 
deep-rooted  prejudices,  and  unfounded  reports  among  the 
Indians,  produced  by  the  arts  of  a  few  bad  men  residing 
among  them.  They  assured  him  of  the  liberal  views  and 
feelings  of  the  United  States,  towards  all  the  Indian  tribes 
— that  they  were  prepared  to  make  every  concession,  that 
the  condition  of  their  settlements  would  permit — and  to 
make  ample  compensation  for  any  concessions  made  to 
them  by  the  Indians. 

They  solicited  his  influence  in  counteracting  those  re- 
ports, and  disabusing  the  minds  of  the  Indians;  andftv  that 
purpose,  requested  him  to  designate  some  of  the  British 
officers,  to  accompany  them  to  Sandusky,  and  attend  the 
treaty.      The  Governor    answered    their  note  with   great 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  137 

kindness  and  good  feeling,  intimating  a  readiness  to  aid 
them  to  the  extent  of  his  power  and  duty.  On  mentioning 
to  him  their  intention  of  proceeding  to  Detroit,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  obtaining  information,  he  objected  to  their  going  up 
to  the  town,  though  they  might  go  to  the  mouth  of  Detroit 
river,  and  offered  to  obtain  letters  for  them,  from  Mr.  Baby, 
a  member  of  the  Legislative  Council,  to  persons  residing 
there,  who  would  furnish  such  accommodations  as  they 
might  need. 

On  that  suggestion,  they  determined  to  proceed,  at  once, 
to  the  place  designated,  but  were  detained  several  days,  by 
contrary  winds.  In  the  mean  time,  Colonel  Butler,  a  Bri- 
tish Superintendent  of  Indian  affairs,  and  Captain  Brandt, 
arrived,  with  about  fifty  Indians,  being  a  deputation  from 
the  Nations  assembled  at  the  rapids  of  the  Miami,  to  confer 
with  the  Commissioners,  in  presence  of  the  Governor  of 
Upper  Canada. 

On  the  7th  of  July,  Brandt,  in  the  name  of  the  deputies, 
made  the  following  address  to  Governor  Simcoe: — "It 
being  agreed  at  the  rapids,  that  we  should  come  and  meet 
the  Commissioners,  in  our  father's  presence,  we  return  our 
thanks  to  the  Great  Spirit,  for  seeing  your  excellency  well, 
this  day.  Our  intention  and  business  is  peaceable,  and  our 
inclination  is  to  do  what  is  right  and  just.  We  are  all  of 
one  mind,  and  wish  your  excellency  to  be  present." 

The  Governor,  in  reply,  said,  he  was  happy  to  see  them 
well;  and  as  the  Commissioners  expressed  their  wishes  to 
meet  the  Indians  in  his  presence,  he  should  be  glad  to  hear 
what  they  had  to  say.  A  copy  of  this  address  and  answer, 
was  received  by  the  Commissioners,  from  the  Governor,  by 
the  hand  of  his  private  secretary. 

The  deputation  then  met,  and  gave  notice  to  the  Com- 
missioners that  they  desired  to  speak  with  them.  The  Com- 
missioners attended  accordingly,  when  a  Shawanee  chief 
called  CaVs  Eyes,  addressed  them.  He  said,  they  "had  been 
sent  by  the  nations  of  Indians,  assembled  at  the  rapids  of 


138  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

the  Miami,  to  meet  the  Commissioners  of  the  United  States, 
and  that  it  was  the  will  of  the  chiefs  of  those  nations  that 
their  father,  the  Governor  of  the  province,  should  be  pres- 
ent, and  hear  what  they  had  to  say  to  the  Commissioners, 
and  what  the  Commissioners  had  to  say  to  them."  It  was 
then  agreed  that  the  conference  should  be  held  at  the  Gov- 
ernor's house,  the  next  evening.  At  the  time  and  place 
appointed,  the  Governor,  the  Commissioners,  and  the  depu- 
tation of  Indians  from  the  rapids,  with  a  number  of  civil 
and  military  officers,  assembled.  Captain  Brandt,  with  a 
belt  and  strings  of  wampum,  rose  and  said: — 

"Brothers!  We  have  met  to-day,  our  brothers,  the  Bos- 
tonians,  and  the  English."  He  then  proceeded  to  tell  them 
that  they  did  not  assemble  at  the  time  and  place  appointed 
for  holding  the  treaty,  because  there  was  so  much  of  the 
appearance  of  war,  in  that  quarter;  and  requested  an  ex- 
planation of  those  warlike  appearances.  He  told  them 
they  were  sent  to  represent  the  Indian  nations,  who  owned 
in  common,  the  lands  north  of  the  Ohio  river,  and  were  all 
of  one  mind — one  heart.  He  said  further,  "We  have  come 
to  speak  to  you,  for  two  reasons;  one,  because  your  war- 
riors being  in  our  neighborhood,  have  prevented  our  meet- 
ing at  the  appointed  place  ;  the  other,  is  to  know  if  you  are 
properly  authorised  to  run,  and  establish  a  new  boundary 
line,  between  the  lands  of  the  United  States,  and  of  the 
Indian  nations."  He  said  further,  that  they  wished  the 
Commissioners  to  deliberate  well  on  the  business,  and 
affirmed,  that  they  had  spoken  their  sentiments  in  sincerity, 
as  in  the  presence  of  the  Great  Spirit,  from  whom,  in  time 
of  danger,  they  expected  assistance. 

The  Commissioners  answered,  that  they  had  attended  to 
what  had  been  said,  that  they  would  take  it  into  considera- 
tion, and  give  their  answer  to-morrow.  Captain  Brandt  re- 
plied, "We  thank  you  lor  what  you  have  said  ;  von  say  you 
will  answer  our  speech  to-morrow — We  cover  up  the  Coun- 
cil-fire." 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  139 

On  the  next  day,  the  Council  being  again  assembled, 
and  the  same  parties  present  as  before,  the  Commissioners 
delivered  their  answer  to  the  speech  of  Captain  Brandt. 
After  recapitulating  accurately,  the  speech  of  the  Indians 
on  the  preceding  day,  they  requested  them  to  listen  to  the 
answer,  in  behalf  of  the  United  States.  In  explanation 
of  the  two  objects  specially  stated  in  that  speech,  they 
remarked — that  as  to  the  first  point,  they  could  not  but 
express  their  extreme  regret,  that  any  reports  of  warlike 
appearances  on  the  part  of  the  United  States,  on  the 
northern  side  of  the  Ohio  river,  should  have  delayed  the 
meeting  at  Sandusky.  They  insisted  that  the  nature  of  the 
case  irresistibly  forbade  all  apprehensions  of  hostile  incur- 
sions into  the  Indian  country  north  of  the  Ohio,  during  the 
progress  of  the  treaty  at  Sandusky. 

They  assured  them  that  they  were  deputed  by  the  great 
Chief,  and  the  great  Council  of  the  United  States,  to  treat 
with  them  in  peace ;  and  that  it  was  impossible  for  the 
same  great  Chief,  and  his  great  Council,  to  order  their  war- 
riors to  make  fresh  war,  while  their  Commissioners  were 
sitting  around  the  same  Council-fire  with  their  red  brothers, 
in  order  to  make  peace.  That  it  was  impossible  for  the 
great  American  Chief,  General  Washington,  and  his  Coun- 
cil, to  act  so  deceitfully  towards  their  own  Commissioners, 
and  towards  them,  their  red  brothers.  They  assured  the 
deputation,  and  all  others  who  were  then  present,  that  the 
great  American  Chief  had  strictly  forbidden  all  hostilities 
against  them,  till  the  event  of  the  proposed  treaty  at  San- 
dusky should  be  known  :  and  they  produced  the  proclama- 
tion of  General  Wayne,  the  head  warrior  of  the  Americans, 
to  that  effect. 

"Our  great  Chief,"  said  they,  "is  so  sincere  in  his  profes- 
sions in  favor  of  peace,  and  so  desirous  of  preventing  every 
thing  which  could  obstruct  the  treaty,  and  prolong  the  war, 
that  besides  giving  the  orders,  just  exhibited,  to  his  head 
warrior,  he  has  informed  the  Governors  of  the  States  ad- 


140  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

joining  the  Ohio,  of  the  treaty  proposed  to  be  held  at  San- 
dusky, and  desired  them  to  unite  their  power  with  his,  to 
prevent  any  hostile  attempts  against  the  Indians  north  of 
the  Ohio,  until  the  results  of  the  treaty  should  be  made 
known ;  and  that  those  Governors  had  accordingly  issued 
their  orders,  strictly  forbidding  all  such  hostilities."  They 
then  exhibited  the  proclamations  of  the  Governors  of  Vir- 
ginia and  Pennsylvania,  and  said  further,  that  after  all  these 
precautions  of  the  great  American  Chief,  if  any  hostilities 
should  be  committed  north  of  the  Ohio,  they  must  proceed 
from  a  few  lawless  people,  whom  no  considerations  of  jus- 
tice or  public  good  could  restrain ;  but  they  did  not  believe 
that  any  such  could  be  found.  Having  made  these  expla- 
nations, they  expressed  a  hope  that  their  red  brethren 
would  possess  their  minds  in  peace,  relying  on  the  good 
faith  of  the  United  States,  that  no  injury  was  to  be  appre- 
hended by  them,  during  the  treaty.1 

As  to  the  second  point,  whether  the  Commissioners  were 
properly  authorised  to  run  and  establish  a  new  boundary 
line,  they  answered  explicitly,  that  they  were  vested  with 
that  power;  and  that  the  great  discussion  at  the  treaty 
would  be,  where  that  line  should  be  run ;  and  added  their 
sincere  hope  and  expectation,  that  it  might  be  fixed  to  the 
entire  satisfaction  of  both  parties.  They  expressed  it  as 
their  conviction,  that  some  concessions  would  have  to  be 
made  on  both  sides;  as  in  all  disputes  or  quarrels,  both 
parties  usually  took  some  wrong  steps ;  so  that  it  was  only 
by  mutual  concessions,  that  a  true  reconciliation  could  be 
effected.  On  that  head  they  expressed  a  strong  wish  to  be 
clearly  understood,  as  they  intended  that  all  their  proceed- 
ings should  be  marked  with  candor.  They  repeated  their 
former  remark,  and  said  explicitly,  that  some  concessions 
would  be  necessary  on  their  part,  as  well  as  on  their  own, 
in  order  to  establish  a  just  and  permanent  peace.  They 
added,  that  after  the  great  point  of  boundary  should  be 
fully  considered,  at  the  treaty,  they  would  know  what  con- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  141 

cessions  and  stipulations  it  would  be  proper  to  make,  on 
the  part  of  the  United  States ;  which  they  trusted  would  be 
such,  as  the  world  would  pronounce  reasonable  and  just. 

They  said  further,  that  as  the  deputation  had  told  them, 
that  they  represented  the  nations  who  owned  the  land  north 
of  the  Ohio,  whose  chiefs  were  assembled  at  the  rapids  of 
the  Miami,  it  would  be  a  satisfaction  to  be  informed  of  the 
names  of  those  nations,  and  of  the  number  of  the  chiefs  of 
each,  so  assembled.  They  again  called  the  attention  of 
the  Indians  to  the  representation  they  had  made,  of  warlike 
appearances  in  their  country ;  and  in  order  to  give  them 
complete  satisfaction  on  that  point,  they  assured  them,  that 
as  soon  as  the  council  then  sitting  should  close,  they  would 
send  a  messenger  on  horse-back,  to  the  great  chief  of  the 
United  States,  desiring  him  to  renew  and  strongly  repeat 
his  orders,  to  his  head  warrior,  not  only  to  abstain  from  all 
hostilities,  but  to  remain  quietly  at  his  post,  until  the  event 
of  the  treaty  should  be  known. 

This  speech  of  the  American  Commissioners  having  been 
interpreted,  by  different  persons,  into  the  language  of  each 
of  the  chiefs  present;  the  Shawanee  chief  again  addressed 
the  Commissioners,  in  these  words : 

" BrotJiers^the  Bostonians,  attend!  We  have  heard  your 
words.  Our  fathers,  the  English  people,  have  also  heard 
them.  We  thank  the  Great  Spirit  that  you  and  we  have 
been  preserved  in  peace,  and  that  we  bring  our  pipes  to- 
gether. The  people  of  all  the  different  nations  here,  salute 
you.  They  rejoice  to  hear  your  words.  It  gives  us  great 
satisfaction  that  our  fathers,  the  English,  have  heard  them 
also.  We  shall,  for  the  present,  take  our  pipes  and  return 
to  our  encampment,  where  we  shall  deliberately  consider 
your  speech,  and  return  you  an  answer  to-morrow." 

On  the  next  day  the  council  met,  present  as  yesterday. 
Captain  Brandt  rose  with  the  belt  and  strings  of  wampum, 
yesterday  delivered  by  the  Commissioners,  and  addressing 
himself  to  the  English  and  Americans,  said : 


142  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"We  are  glad  the  Great  Spirit  has  preserved  us  in 
peace,  to  meet  together  to-day."  "Brothers  of  the  United 
States:  yesterday  you  made  an  answer  to  the  message  de- 
livered you  by  us,  from  the  great  council  at  Miami,  in  the 
two  particulars  which  we  had  stated  to  you.  You  may 
depend  on  it,  we  fully  understood  your  speech.  We  shall 
take  with  us  your  belt  and  strings,  and  repeat  it  to  the 
chiefs  at  the  great  council  at  the  Miami."  [He  then  laid 
down  the  strings  and  belt,  and  took  up  a  white  belt  and 
proceeded.] 

"Brothers!  We  have  something  more  to  say  to  you, 
though  not  much.  We  are  small,  compared  with  our  great 
chiefs,  at  the  Miami;  but  though  small,  we  have  some- 
thing to  say.  We  think,  from  your  speech,  there  is  a  pros- 
pect of  coming  together.  We,  who  are  the  nations  at  the 
West,  are  of  one  mind;  and  if  we  agree  with  you,  as  there 
is  a  prospect  that  we  shall,  it  will  be  binding  and  lasting. 
Our  prospects  are  the  fairer,  because  our  minds  are  one. 
You  have  not  heretofore  spoken  to  us  unitedly.  Formerly, 
because  you  did  not  speak  to  us  unitedly,  what  was  done 
was  not  binding.  Now  you  have  an  opportunity  of  speak- 
ing to  us  together ;  and  we  now  take  you  by  the  hand,  to 
lead  you  to  the  place  appointed  for  the  meeting."  [A 
white  belt  of  seven  rows.] 

"Brothers!  This  is  all  we  have  to  say." 

Afterwards,  Captain  Brandt,  recollecting  that  he  had 
not  answered  the  Commissioners,  respecting  the  nations 
and  chiefs  assembled  at  the  Miami,  rose  and  said:  "One 
thing  more  we  have  to  say — Yesterday  you  expressed  a 
wish  to  be  informed  of  the  names  of  the  nations,  and  num- 
ber of  chiefs  assembled  at  the  Miami ;  but  as  they  were 
daily  coming,  we  cannot  give  you  exact  information ;- —you 
will  see  for  yourselves  in  a  few  days.  When  we  left  it, 
the  following  nations  were  there,  to  wit: — Five  Nations, 
Wyandotts,  Shawanees,  Delawarcs,  Munsees,  Miamies, 
Ottawas,  Chippewas,  Potawatamies,  Mihgoes,  Cherokee. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  143 

and  Nan-ti-ko-kces.     The  principal  men  of  all  these  na- 
tions were  there." 

The  Commissioners  then  replied,  "  Brothers !  Our  ears 
have  been  open  to  your  speech.  It  is  agreeable  to  us. 
We  are  ready  to  accompany  you  to  the  place  of  treaty, 
where,  under  the  direction  of  the  Great  Spirit,  we  hope  for 
a  speedy  termination  to  the  present  war,  on  terms  equally 
interesting  and  agreeable  to  all  parties." 

On  the  10th  of  July,  the  Commissioners  wrote  to  the  Sec- 
retary of  War,  advising  him  of  their  promise  to  the  In- 
dians, to  request  that  fresh  orders  might  be  sent  to  Gen- 
eral Wayne,  not  only  to  abstain  from  hostilities,  but  to 
remain  quietly  at  his  post;  and  expressing  their  own  opin- 
ion in  favor  of  the  measure;  as  being  indispensably  neces- 
sary to  the  success  of  the  treaty.  The  Indians  had  been 
informed  by  their  scouts,  who  were  constantly  on  the  alert, 
that  General  Wayne  had  cut  and  cleared  a  road  from  Fort 
Washington  into  the  Indian  country,  passing  Fort  Jeffer- 
son, and  extending  six  miles  beyond  it; — that  large  quanti- 
ties of  provision  were  accumulated  at  the  forts,  and  that 
large  droves  of  horses  and  cattle  were  collected  and  guard- 
ed by  considerable  bodies  of  troops.  With  such  prepara- 
tions for  war  in  their  neighborhood,  they  said  it  was  im- 
possible for  their  minds  to  be  at  rest. 

It  is  important,  said  the  Commissioners,  to  consider  the 
manner  in  which  negotiations  are  carried  on,  and  treaties 
formed  by  the  Indians.  Such  business  is  not  managed  as 
it  is  with  us,  by  a  few  Commissioners  or  Chiefs,  but  the 
body  of  the  nation  assemble  and  take  part  in  the  transac- 
tions. Hence  it  was,  that  such  negotiations  were  delayed 
or  interrupted,  if  the  movements  of  an  enemy  called  the 
warriors  from  the  council,  to  watch  or  check  them.  These 
reports,  they  believed,  were  greatly  exaggerated;  but  there 
was  enough  of  truth  in  them,  to  create  alarm  in  the  suspi- 
cious minds  of  Indians.  Many  of  them  feared,  and  some 
believed,  that  the  treaty  was  intended  as  a  decoy;  and  that 


144  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

measures  were  on  foot,  to  strike  a  fatal  blow,  as  soon  as 
their  tribes  should  be  assembled  at  Sandusky. 

It  was  easy,  without  violating  the  truth,  to  contradict 
those  reports,  as  was  done  by  the  Commissioners,  in  the 
most  positive  manner;  but  it  was  not  so  easy  to  convince 
the  minds  of  the  savages,  or  quiet  their  fears ;  hence  the 
earnestness  with  which  they  pressed  their  recommendation 
on  the  attention  of  the  government. 

On  the  next  day,  the  Commissioners  left  Niagara,  and  on 
the  day  after,  arrived  at  Fort  Erie.  The  wind  being  favor- 
able, they  set  sail  for  the  mouth  of  Detroit  river,  where 
they  arrived  on  the  morning  of  the  21st,  and  took  quarters 
at  Captain  Elliott's,  who  was  an  assistant  to  Colonel  Mc- 
Kee.  On  the  same  day,  they  addressed  a  note  to  the  Col- 
onel, informing  him  of  their  arrival  at  that  place,  where 
they  proposed  to  remain,  till  advised  that  the  Indians  at 
the  rapids  of  the  Miami,  were  ready  to  remove  to  San- 
dusky. They  also  very  politely  solicited  his  endeavors,  to 
expedite  the  councils  of  the  Indians,  and  to  inform  them 
(the  Commissioners)  when  they  might  expect  the  Indian 
nations  would  be  at  Sandusky ;  so  that  they  might  regulate 
their  movements  accordingly.  In  a  few  daj^s  thereafter, 
Captain  Elliott  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  Detroit  river, 
with  a  deputation  of  twenty  Indians,  from  the  nations  as- 
sembled at  the  foot  of  the  rapids;  and  on  the  following  day, 
the  Commissioners  met  them  in  council. 

A  Wyandot  chief,  after  some  complimentary,  unmeaning 
remarks,  interpreted  by  Simon  Girty,  a  renegade  American 
from  the  neighborhood  of  Pittsburgh,  delivered  to  the  Com- 
missioners a  paper,  which,  he  said,  contained  the  determi- 
nation of  the  Indians.  The  substance  of  the  communica- 
tion was  to  this  effect:  that  they  insisted  on  the  treaty  of 
Fort  Stanwix,  which  established  the  Ohio  river  as  the 
boundary  between  them  and  the  white  people ;  and  that  if 
the  United  States  seriously  wished  to  make  a  firm  and 
lasting  peace,  they  would   immediately  remove  all   their 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  145 

people  from  the  upper  side  of  that  river,  which  the  Indians 
claimed  as  their  own.  This  paper  was  signed  by  the  Wy- 
andots,  Delawares,  Shawanees,  Miamies,  Mingoes,  Potta- 
wratamies,  Ottawas,  Connoys,  Chippewas  and  Munsees. 

In  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  the  Commissioners  deliv- 
ered their  answer  to  the  Indian  deputation,  in  which  they 
very  concisely  recapitulated  the  substance  of  what  had  oc- 
curred, in  their  different  interviews  with  the  representa- 
tives of  the  Indian  nations ;  and  exhibited  the  inconsistency 
between  their  former  conversations,  and  the  grounds  they 
had  then  taken ;  and  again  urged  the  necessity  of  mutual 
concessions;  and  once  more  repeated  the  offer  of  the  Uni- 
ted States  to  act  on  that  principle.  They  stated  their  rea- 
sons for  wishing  to  meet  all  the  Indians  in  council,  face  to 
face.  They  insisted,  that  the  concessions  which  ought  to 
be  made  on  either  side,  and  also  the  fixing  of  the  boundary 
line,  between  the  United  States  and  their  red  brothers, 
were  proper  subjects  for  discussion  at  the  treaty,  when 
they  would  speak  face  to  face.  They  also  complained,  that 
the  course  adopted  by  the  nations  at  the  Rapids,  kept  the 
parties  at  a  distance  from  each  other,  and  cherished  those 
jealousies  and  suspicions,  which  were  the  greatest  obsta- 
cles to  a  peace ;  and  that  they  were,  on  that  account,  desi- 
rous of  meeting  the  Indian  nations  in  full  council,  without 
more  delay. 

They  admitted,  that  by  the  first  treaty  made  at  Fort 
Stanwix,  in  1768,  the  Ohio  was  made  the  boundary,  but 
reminded  them,  that,  when  the  United  States  became  an 
independent  nation,  the  British  King  established  the  chain 
of  the  great  Lakes,  as  the  boundary.  They  also  called 
the  attention  of  the  deputation  to  the  second  treaty  of  Fort 
Stanwix,  made  in  1784;  and  to  the  treaty  of  Fort  Harmar, 
in  1789,  by  which  the  United  States  purchased  large  tracts 
of  land  from  the  Indians,  north  of  the  Ohio,  which  had  been 
sold  to  white  people  who  had  settled  and  improved  them  — 
that  these  settlements  were  very  numerous — that  they  had 
10 


146  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

been  expensive,  and  could  not  be  given  up,  on  any  terms 
whatever.  They  then  told  the  deputies  in  direct  and  posi- 
tive terms,  that,  for  the  reasons  stated,  it  was  impossible  to 
make  the  river  the  boundary  between  their  people  and  the 
citizens  of  the  United  States. 

The  Commissioners  then  appealed  to  the  understanding 
and  good  sense  of  the  deputies,  to  determine,  whether, 
under  the  circumstances  stated,  it  were  possible  to  make 
the  Ohio  the  boundary ;  and  whether  it  was  not  necessary, 
in  order  to  obtain  a  permanent  peace,  that  both  they  and 
the  United  States  should  make  concessions.  They  again 
desired  the  deputation  to  hear  them  patiently.  The  busi- 
ness, they  said,  was  of  the  highest  importance,  and  required 
a  great  many  words  to  be  understood.  They  further 
stated,  that  in  their  opinion,  the  concession  necessary  to  be 
made,  on  the  part  of  the  Indians,  was,  to  relinquish  a  part 
of  the  lands  north  of  the  Ohio — that  the  United  States 
wished  to  have  confirmed  to  them,  all  the  lands  ceded  by 
the  treaty  of  Fort  Harmar,  and  also  a  small  tract  near  the 
Falls,  for  the  use  of  General  Clark  and  his  warriors ;  in 
consideration  of  which,  the  United  States  would  give  the 
largest  sum,  in  money  or  goods,  that  was  ever  given,  at 
one  time,  for  any  quantity  of  Indian  lands,  since  the  white 
people  first  set  their  foot  on  this  island.  They  told  them 
further,  that,  inasmuch  as  those  lands  furnished  them  every 
year,  with  skins  and  furs,  with  which  they  bought  clothing, 
and  other  necessaries;  the  United  States  would  furnish 
them  with  the  same  description  of  supplies ;  and  in  addi- 
tion to  the  great  sum  to  be  advanced  at  once,  they  would 
every  year  deliver  to  them  large  quantities  of  such  goods, 
as  were  most  necessary  for  them,  and  their  women  and 
children.  They  said  further,  that  if  the  Indians  corld  not 
give  up  all  the  lands  mentioned  before,  then  they  would 
desire  to  treat  and  agree  on  a  new  boundary  line;  and  for 
the  land  ceded  by  such  new  line,  the  United  States  would 
pay  them  a  large  compensation. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  147 

This,  said  the  Commissioners,  is  one  concession  offered 
by  the  United  States; — now  listen  to  another,  on  a  subject 
which  has  probably  disturbed  your  minds  more  than  any 
other  whatever.  The  United  States  formerly  set  up  a  claim 
to  all  the  country  south  of  the  great  Lakes,  on  the  ground 
that  it  was  given  to  them  by  the  treaty  of  peace,  with  your 
father,  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  who  declared  the  middle 
of  those  Lakes  to  be  the  boundary  of  the  United  States  ■ 
but,  they  added,  "we  are  determined  to  be  open  and  sin- 
cere, and  therefore  frankly  tell  you,  we  think  an  erroneous 
construction  has  been  put  on  that  part  of  the  treaty  with 
the  King — that  he  only  intended  to  transfer  the  right  of 
pre-emption,  or  the  exclusive  right  of  purchasing  the  title 
of  the  Indians,  which  he  then  held;  and  your  great  father 
having  conveyed  that  right  to  the  United  States,  they 
alone  have  now  the  power  of  purchasing  from  you,  his 
children."  They  added,  "All  your  brothers,  the  English, 
know  this  to  be  true,  and  it  agrees  with  what  your  father 
Lord  Dorchester,  told  you  at  Quebec,  two  years  ago." 
"Now,"  said  they,  "we  concede  this  great  point.  By  the 
express  authority  of  the  President  of  the  United  States,  we 
acknowledge  the  property  or  right  of  soil  to  the  great  coun- 
try above  described,  to  be  in  the  Indian  nations,  as  lon°- 
as  they  desire  to  occupy  it.  We  claim  only  the  tracts  be- 
fore particularly  mentioned,  and  the  right  of  pre-emption 
granted  by  the  King  as  before  explained." 

In  conclusion,  they  said,  "Brothers!  We  have  now 
opened  our  hearts  to  you.  We  are  happy  in  having  an 
opportunity  of  doing  it,  though  we  had  rather  have  done 
it  in  the  full  council  of  your  nations.  We  hope  soon  to 
have  an  opportunity  of  doing  this;  and  that  your  next 
deputation  will  take  us  by  the  hand,  and  lead  us  to  the 
treaty.  When  we  meet,  and  converse  freely,  we  can 
easily  remove  any  difficulty  which  may  come  in  the  way 
of  peace." 

The   Commissioners   then    handed  the   speech  with   a 


148  BURNET'S  NOTES   ON  THE 

white  belt,  crossed  with  thirteen  rows  of  black  wampum, 
to  the  Indian  deputation,  who  promised  to  make  a  reply 
in  the  morning. 

The  next  day,  August  the  1st,  the  council  met,  when  the 
Wyandot  Chief  spoke  as  follows  : 

"  Brothers!  We  heard  you  speak  yesterday.  We  under- 
stand you  well.  You  mentioned  the  treaty  of  Fort  Stan- 
wix,  and  other  treaties;  those  treaties  were  not  complete; 
there  were  but  a  few  chiefs  who  treated  with  you.  You  have 
not  bought  our  land.  You  tried  to  draw  some  of  us  off. 
Many  years  ago,  the  Ohio  was  made  the  boundary.  That 
was  settled  by  Sir  William  Johnston.  You  mentioned 
General  Washington, — he  and  you  know,  that  you  have 
your  houses  and  people  on  our  land.  You  say  you  cannot 
move  them  off.  We  say,  we  cannot  give  up  our  land. 
We  are  sorry  we  cannot  come  to  an  agreement.  The  line 
has  been  fixed  long  ago.— Brothers!  We  don't  say  much. 
There  has  been  much  mischief  on  both  sides.  We  came 
here  upon  peace,  and  thought  you  did  the  same.  We  shall 
talk  to  our  head  warriors.  You  may  return  whence  you 
came,  and  tell  Washington." 

The  Council  then  breaking  up,  Captain  Elliot  went  to 
the  Shawanee  Chief,  and  told  him  that  the  last  part  of  the 
speech  of  the  Wyandot  Chief  was  wrong.  The  Wyandot 
Chief  then  came  back,  and  admitted  that  it  was  wrong. 
After  some  explanations,  Girty  said  to  the  Commissioners  : 

"  Brothers  !  Instead  of  going  home,  we  wish  you  to  re- 
main here  for  an  answer  from  us.  We  have  your  speech, 
and  shall  consult  our  head  warriors."  The  Commissioners 
consented  to  remain,  but  desired  their  answer  might  be 
given  without  delay. 

Some  days  after,  letters  were  received  from  Captain 
Ilendrick,  chief  of  the  Mohicans,  giving  information  of  the 
proceedings  of  the  Indians  at  the  Rapids,  and  stating,  (hat 
the  nations  were  all  for  peace,  except  the  Shaw  a  noes,  Wy- 
andots,   Miami os,   and    Delawares.      Reports   were    after- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  149 

wards  received,  that  those  nations,  also,  had  yielded  to  the 
majority,  and  that  peace  might  be  expected.  These  re- 
ports, however,  proved  to  be  unfounded.  After  waiting 
nearly  two  weeks,  without  any  official  information,  they 
proposed  to  proceed  to  the  Rapids,  and  make  their  appeal 
to  the  assembled  nations  in  person ;  but  were  told  they 
could  not  be  permittted  to  go  to  the  M aumee  Bay,  till  Colo- 
nel McKee  should  give  them  notice,  that  the  Indians  were 
ready  to  receive  them. 

After  waiting  a  few  days  longer,  the  Commissioners 
received  the  final  answer  of  the  Indians,  in  which  they 
recapitulated  the  speech  delivered  to  them  by  the  Commis- 
sioners, on  the  31st  of  July,  at  the  mouth  of  Detroit  river, 
and  then  proceeded  to  say,  in  substance,  that  a  general 
council  of  all  the  Indian  Confederacy,  was  held  in  the  fall 
of  1788,  at  the  same  place  in  which  they  were  then  assem- 
bled,— that  they  were  then  invited  by  Governor  St.  Clair  to 
meet  him,  for  the  purpose  of  holding  a  treaty  respecting 
the  lands  claimed  to  have  been  granted  to  the  United 
States,  by  the  treaties  of  Fort  Stanwix  and  Fort  Mcintosh, 
— that  the  Commissioner  of  the  United  States  was  then 
informed,  that  no  bargain,  or  sale,  of  any  part  of  those  lands 
would  be  considered  as  valid,  or  binding  on  the  Indians,  un- 
less agreed  to  by  a  General  Council, — that,  notwithstanding 
this,  the  Commissioner  persisted  in  collecting  a  few  Chiefs 
of  two  or  three  nations  only,  and  with  them,  held  a  treaty 
for  the  cession  of  an  immense  country,  in  which  they  were 
no  more  interested,  than  as  a  branch  of  the  General  Con- 
federacy,— and,  that  they  were  in  no  manner  authorised  to 
make  any  grant  or  concession  whatever. 

They  also  said,  that  it  was  impossible  for  the  United 
States  to  enjoy  peace,  or  quietly  hold  those  lands,  when 
their  Commissioner  was  informed,  long  before  he  held  the 
treaty  of  Fort  Harmar,  that  the  consent  of  a  General  Coun- 
cil was  absolutely  necessary,  to  convey  any  part  of  them  to 
the  United  States, — that  the  parts  which  had  been  sold  by 


150  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

the  United  States,  and  settled  by  their  people,  were  sold 
subsequent  to  the  notice  above  stated. 

In  regard  to  the  large  sum  of  money,  and  the  annuity 
offered  by  the  Commissioners,  they  remarked,  that  money 
to  them,  was  of  no  value,  and  to  most  of  them,  was  un- 
known ;  and  as  no  consideration  whatever,  could  induce 
them  to  sell  the  land  on  which  they  depended  for  a  subsis- 
tence for  their  women  and  children,  they  hoped  they  might 
be  allowed  to  point  out  to  the  Commissioners  a  mode  by 
which  their  settlers  on  those  lands  might  be  easily  removed, 
and  peace  be  thereby  obtained.  Presuming  that  those 
settlers  were  poor,  from  the  fact,  that  they  had  ventured 
to  live  in  a  country  which  had  been  in  constant  trouble 
since  they  crossed  the  Ohio,  they  proposed  to  divide  the 
large  sum  of  money  which  had  been  offered  to  the  Indians, 
among  them;  and  also,  to  give  each  a  portion  of  the  pro- 
mised annuity,  which  they  believed,  the  settlers  would  rea- 
dily accept,  in  lieu  of  the  land.  They  said  further,  that  if, 
in  addition  to  this,  the  United  States  would  give  to  those 
settlers,  the  great  sums  which  must  be  expended  in  raising 
and  paying  armies,  to  drive  the  Indians  from  their  country, 
they  would  certainly  have  more  than  sufficient  to  repay  them 
for  all  their  labor  and  improvements.  They  said  further, 
that  the  Commissioners  had  talked  about  concessions,  but 
it  appeared  strange,  they  should  expect  any  from  the  Indi- 
ans, who  had  been  only  defending  their  just  rights  against 
invasion. — "We  want  peace,"  said  they,  "  restore  to  us  our 
country,  and  we  shall  be  enemies  no  longer." 

"  You  make  one  concession,  by  offering  us  money,  and 
another,  by  agreeing  to  do  us  justice,  after  having  long 
and  injuriously  withhold  it. 

"We  maintain  that  the  king  of  England  never  did,  and 
that  he  never  had  a  right  to  give  you  our  country,  by  the 
treaty  of  peace.  Because  you  have  at  last  acknowledged 
our  independence,  you  want  to  make  that  act  of  common 
justice,  a  ground  for  surrendering  to  you  our  country.     You 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  151 

have  talked  also  a  great  deal  about  pre-emption,  and  your 
exclusive  right  to  purchase  our  lands,  ceded  to  you,  as  you 
say,  by  the  king,  at  the  treaty  of  peace.  We  never  made 
any  agreement  with  the  king  to  that  effect,  and  we  declare 
ourselves  free  to  make  any  bargain  or  cession  of  lands 
whenever,  and  to  whomsoever  we  please."  They  said  fur- 
ther, that  at  their  general  council  at  the  Glaise,  last  fall, 
they  agreed  to  meet  Commissioners  from  the  United  States, 
provided  they  consented  to  acknowledge  and  confirm  the 
Ohio  to  be  the  boundary  line,  and  on  no  other  condition. 
They  affirmed,  that  their  only  demand  was  the  peaceable 
possession  of  the  small  part  of  their  once  great  country, 
which  remained  to  them.  They  entreated  the  Commis- 
sioners to  look  back  upon  the  lands,  from  which  they  had 
been  driven.  They  alledged  that  they  could  retreat  no 
farther;  because  the  country  behind,  hardly  afforded  food 
for  its  present  inhabitants;  and  that  they  had  therefore 
resolved  to  leave  their  bones,  in  the  small  space  to  which 
they  were  then  confined. 

In  conclusion,  they  said:  "Brothers!  We  shall  be  per- 
suaded that  you  mean  to  do  us  justice,  if  you  agree  that 
the  Ohio  shall  remain  the  boundary  line  between  us.  If 
you  will  not  consent  to  that,  our  meeting  will  be  altogether 
unnecessary.  This  is  the  great  point,  which  we  hoped 
would  have  been  explained  before  you  left  your  homes,  as 
our  message,  last  fall,  was  principally  directed  to  that  sub- 
ject." 

This  communication  was  signed  by  the  Wyandots,  Seven 
Nations  of  Canada,  Delawares,  Shawanees,  Miamies,  Otta- 
was,  Chippewas,  Senecas  of  the  Glaise,  Pottawatamies, 
Connoys,  Munsees,  Nantikokees,  Mohicans,  Creeks,  and 
Cherokee  s. 

The  Commissioners  immediately  dispatched  the  follow- 
ing reply,  to  the  chiefs  and  warriors  of  the  Indian  nations, 
assembled  at  the  foot  of  the  Miami  rapids : 


152  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Brothers !  We  have  just  received  your  answer  to  our 
speech  of  the  31st  of  last  month.  You  say  it  was  interpret- 
ed to  all  your  nations,  and  we  presume  it  was  fully  under- 
stood. We  therein  explicitly  declared,  that  it  was  impos- 
sible to  make  the  Ohio  river  the  boundary,  between  your 
lands  and  the  lands  of  the  United  States.  Your  answer 
amounts  to  a  declaration,  that  you  will  agree  to  no  other 
boundary  than  the  Ohio.  The  negotiation  is  therefore  at 
an  end." 

"Brothers!  We  sincerely  regret  that  peace  is  not  the  re- 
sult, but  knowing  the  liberal  and  upright  views  of  the  United 
States,  which,  as  far  as  you  gave  us  an  opportunity,  we 
have  explained  to  you;  we  trust  that  impartial  judges  will 
not  attribute  the  continuance  of  the  war  to  us,  or  our  country." 

On  the  next  morning,  the  Commissioners  sent  informa- 
tion, by  their  own  runners,  to  the  chiefs  of  the  Six  Nations, 
of  what  had  been  done,  expressing  their  regret  at  the  fail- 
ure of  the  negotiation,  and  furnishing  them  with  copies  of 
the  proceedings,  which  they  might  not  otherwise  obtain. 
They  assured  the  Six  Nations,  that  they  came  with  the  most 
sincere  desire  to  make  a  peace,  that  would  be  beneficial  to 
both  parties ;  and  that,  if  such  a  peace  had  been  established, 
not  only  the  justice  and  humanity  of  the  United  States, 
would  have  been  continued  to  the  tribes,  but  their  benefi- 
cence would  have  been  extended  to  them ;  and  peace  would 
have  been  rendered  as  lasting  as  the  hills.  But  having 
failed  in  this  object,  they  should  return  home,  and  report 
their  proceedings  to  the  President. 

Thus  ended  in  disappointment,  a  tedious  negotiation  of 
three  months,  conducted  on  the  part  of  the  United  States, 
with  great  prudence  and  talent.  Only  a  few  days  before 
its  termination,  the  reports  from  the  great  council,  at  the 
foot  of  the  Rapids,  authorised  the  expectation  of  a  success- 
ful result. 

From  a  review  of  the  whole  affair,  it  is  manifest,  that  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  153 

grounds  taken  by  the  American  Commissioners,  in  regard 
to  the  obligatory  character  of  the  treaties  between  the  Uni- 
ted States  and  the  Indians,  from  the  second,  negotiated  at 
Fort  Stan\vix,in  1784,  to  that  of  Fort  Harmar,in  1789,  were 
sound  and  unanswerable.  From  the  same  examination,  it 
will  also  be  evident,  that  a  treaty,  satisfactory  to  both  par- 
ties, would  have  been  made,  but  for  the  influence,  steadily 
and  successfully  exerted  on  the  minds  of  the  savages,  by 
the  agents  of  the  British  government;  and  it  will  also  ap- 
pear, that  every  tribe  represented  in  the  great  council,  ex- 
cept the  Wyandots,  Shawanees,  Delawares,  and  Miamies, 
were  willing,  and  most  of  them  anxious  to  make  a  treaty, 
and  put  an  end  to  the  war. 

On  the  23d  of  August  the  Commissioners  arrived  at  Fort 
Erie,  on  their  way  home ;  from  whence  they  wrote  to  Major 
Craig,  Deputy  Quartermaster,  at  Pittsburgh,  enclosing  let- 
ters for  General  Wayne,  which  they  directed  to  be  conveyed 
to  him  with  the  utmost  speed,  and  that  no  expense  should 
be  spared  to  effect  it. 

To  guard  against  disappointment,  copies  of  those  letters 
were  multiplied,  and  sent  by  four  or  five  different  convey- 
ances. Their  chief  object  was  to  advise  the  Commander- 
in-chief  of  the  failure  of  the  treaty— to  put  him  on  his 
guard— to  let  him  know  that  the  embargo  laid  on  his  move- 
ments was  taken  off,  and  that  he  was  then  at  liberty  to  re- 
new hostilities  against  the  Indians,  without  delay.  One  of 
them,  written  at  Fort  Erie,  on  the  23rd  of  August,  closed 
with  the  following  remark :— "  Although  we  did  not  effect 
a  peace,  yet  we  hope  that  good  may  hereafter  arise  from 
the  mission.  The  tranquillity  of  the  country,  northwest  of 
the  Ohio,  during  the  continuance  of  the  treaty,  evinced 
your  care  of  our  safety,  and  we  cannot  leave  this  quarter, 
without  returning  you  our  unfeigned  thanks." 

The  Commissioners,  on  their  way  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Detroit  river,  wrote  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  giving  him  a 


154 


BURNET'S   NOTES. 


detailed  account  of  the  progress  and  close  of  the  negotia- 
tion and  informing  him  of  the  means  taken  to  communi- 
cate to  General  Wayne,  and  the  different  agents  of  the 
government  in  the  western  country,  the  failure  of  the  treaty, 
and  the  course  they  had  pursued  to  conciliate  the  Six  Na- 
tions, who  were  openly  and  decidedly  in  favor  of  the  United 
States,  and  who  exerted  all  their  influence  in  the  grand 
council,  to  induce  them  to  make  peace. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

Condition  of  the  Western  Army  in  1793.— Encampment  at  Hobson's  Choice. 
—Discipline  of  the  army.— Order  of  march.— Fortifications  at  Greenville. 
—Indians  attack  Fort  Recovery.— Repulsed  with  very  heavy  loss.— Proofs 
of  British  influence  over  the  Indians.— Lieutenant  Lowery  attacked.— De- 
feated.—Killed. 

All  prospects  of  peace  being  now  at  an  end,  the  atten- 
tion of  the  War  Department  was  directed  to  the  completion 
of  the  army ;  which  was  to  consist  of  five  thousand  one 
hundred  and  twenty,  rank  and  file,  and  to  the  arrange- 
ments necessary  to  sustain  it.  In  answer  to  a  call,  for  a 
statement  of  the  number  of  non-commissioned  officers  and 
privates,  then  in  service,  General  Knox  reported,  that  ex- 
clusive of  the  small  detachments  at  West  Point,  and  in 
the  South,  which  were  not  considered  as  belonging  to  the 
Western  army,  there  were,  on  paper,  three  thousand  five 
hundred  and  ninety-four — showing  a  deficiency  of  fifteen 
hundred  and  twenty-six. 

That  report  was  accompanied  by  a  statement  from  Gen- 
eral Wayne,  made  in  October,  from  which  it  appeared  that 
the  entire  force  for  the  expedition,  independent  of  those  re- 
ported sick,  and  in  garrison,  and  including  ten  hundred  and 
twenty-nine  mounted  volunteers,  to  be  raised  by  General 
Scott,  but  not  yet  in  camp,  amounted  to  three  thousand  six 
hundred  and  twenty-nine.  There  was,  of  course,  at  that 
time,  a  deficiency,  of  fourteen  hundred  and  ninety-one.  In 
addition  to  this,  the  influenza  was  prevailing  with  great  se- 
verity, in  all  parts  of  the  country,  by  which  a  large  propor- 


156 


BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 


tion  of  the  men  in  camp,  were  returned  on  the  sick  list,  as 
unfit  for  duty.  At  the  same  time  General  Wilkinson  was 
lying  dangerously  ill,  at  Fort  Jefferson,  with  the  same 
disease. 

General  Wayne,  having  been  authorised  by  the  War  De- 
partment, to  resort  to  any  lawful  expedient  to  bring  forward 
the  mounted  volunteers  from  Kentucky,  after  a  pressing 
correspondence  on  that  subject  with  Governor  Shelby  and 
General  Scott,  and  after  the  season  was  far  advanced,  pro- 
ceeded to  order  a  draft  from  the  militia  of  that  State,  as  a 
dernier  resort;  remarking  at  the  same  time,  that  he  had  but 
little  hope  of  its  success.  It  was  his  opinion,  that  the  safety 
of  the  out-posts  and  the  settlements  required  him  to  ad- 
vance at  the  earliest  moment  possible,  to  guard  them 
against  the  host  of  savages,  who  were  congregated  at  the 
Rapids,  and  were  then  at  liberty  to  commence  hostilities. 

The  communications  from  the  Commissioners,  in  the  early 
part  of  their  intercourse  with  the  Indians,  had  created  a 
general  expectation  that  peace  would  be  the  result  of  their 
labors;  and,  as  a  consequence  of  that  impression,  the  efforts 
to  complete  the  military  establishment,  were  entirely  sus- 
pended; so  that  when  the  time  for  action  came,  neither  the 
recruits  to  fill  the  regular  regiments,  nor  the  volunteers 
called  for  by  the  President,  from  Kentucky,  were  ready  to 
join  the  army.  In  addition  to  this,  the  sickness  which  had 
prevailed  during  the  summer,  reduced  the  effective  force  in 
camp  to  two  thousand  six  hundred,  officers  included.  Such, 
however,  was  the  exposed  condition  of  the  frontiers,  that 
the  General,  after  deliberately  weighing  the  consequences, 
wrote  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  that  something  must  be 
done,  immediately,  to  save  them  from  the  impending  ftury 
of  the  savages,  and  that  he  would  therefore  advance  with 
the  force  he  then  had,  in  order  to  gain  a  Btrong  position 
in  front  of  Fort  Jefferson,  so  as  to  keep  tlie  enemy  in 
check,  kby  exciting  apprehensions  for  the  safety  of  their 
women   and  children,   and   wait  there,  until   a  favorable 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  157 

opportunity  might  present  itself,  to  strike  a  blow  with 
effect. 

It  was  his  opinion,  that  the  apparent  tranquillity  on  the 
frontier,  and  elsewhere,  was  temporary,  and  indicated  that 
the  enemy  were  collecting  in  force,  to  oppose  the  legion  on 
its  march,  and  attack  it  in  some  position,  unfavorable  for 
the  action  of  cavalry ;  yet  he  expressed  entire  confidence  in 
his  ability  to  sustain  himself,  and  keep  the  enemy  in  check, 
if  nothing  more,  till  his  troops  should  be  collected;  which 
he  hoped  would  be  in  time,  to  give  the  haughty  savage  a 
blow,  that  would  compel  him  to  sue  for  peace,  before  the 
next  opening  of  the  leaves. 

If  he  should  be  disappointed  in  the  arrival  of  his  forces, 
as  he  expected  to  be,  he  assured  the  Secretary,  that  he 
would  not  commit  the  legion,  so  as  to  endanger  its  safety, 
or  put  at  hazard  the  honor  and  reputation  of  the  govern- 
ment; and  that,  unless  more  powerfully  supported  than  he 
then  was,  he  would  content  himself  with  taking  a  strong 
position,  in  advance  of  Fort  Jefferson ;  where  he  might  pro- 
tect the  frontiers,  secure  the  out-posts,  and  improve  the  dis- 
cipline of  his  army,  during  the  winter.  It  was  a  matter  of 
regret,  that  at  so  interesting  a  period,  when  so  much  was 
at  stake,  the  army  had  not  been  completed,  according  to 
the  original  plan  of  the  government.  But  it  will  be  re- 
membered, that  during  the  tedious  negotiation  with  the  In- 
dians, which  continued  between  three  and  four  months,  the 
American  officers  and  agents  were  strictly  prohibited  from 
making  any  movement  of  a  military  character. 

When  that  prohibitory  order  was  received,  in  the  spring 
of  1793,  General  Wayne  was  at  Legionville,  with  a  portion 
of  his  troops,  where  he  continued  in  a  state  of  inactivity, 
during  the  season.  When  the  order  was  revoked,  after  the 
failure  of  the  negotiation,  about  the  1st  of  September,  he 
repaired  to  Fort  Washington,  and  encamped  with  his 
troops  on  the  bank  of  the  Ohio,  between  the  village  of 
Cincinnati  and  Mill  creek.     To  that  encampment,  he  gave 


158  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

the  name  of  "Hobson's  Choice,"  it  being  the  only  place  in 
that  vicinity,  suited  for  the  object  intended.  During  the 
time  they  remained  in  that  encampment,  waiting  for  rein- 
forcements, they  were  constantly  and  laboriously  engaged 
in  military  exercises  and  movements,  particularly  those 
which  had  been  adopted,  as  best  suited  to  the  nature  of  the 
service,  in  which  they  were  employed. 

The  country  through  which  they  had  to  march,  was  a 
dense  wilderness,  containing  ravines,  thickets,  morasses, 
water  courses,  etc.;  at  any  of  which,  the  whole  force  of  the 
Indians  might  be  made  to  operate,  at  once,  on  the  legion, 
without  warning.  The  General  foresaw  this ;  and  that  the 
obstructions  to  be  encountered,  and  the  character  of  the 
enemy  with  whom  he  had  to  contend,  made  it  hazardous 
to  pursue  the  customary  modes  of  marching  through  culti- 
vated, civilized,  countries. 

The  subject  had  therefore  occupied  his  mind,  when  first 
he  received  his  appointment;  and  before  he  left  Philadel- 
phia, he  conversed  on  it  freely  with  the  President,  who  had 
more  experience  in  the  mode  of  Indian  warfare,  and  under- 
stood it  better,  than  any  other  officer  living.  With  the 
information  derived  from  that  high  source,  General  Wayne 
formed  a  plan  for  conducting  his  marches,  and  constructing 
his  encampments,  in  the  Indian  country,  well  calculated  to 
guard  against  surprise,  and  enable  him,  in  case  of  a  sudden 
attack,  to  form  his  line  of  battle  without  confusion,  and  in 
the  shortest  time  possible. 

In  addition  to  the  videttes,  usual  in  military  movements, 
a  strong  guard  preceded  the  army,  which  followed  in 
parallel  lines,  at  such  distances,  and  so  arranged,  that  the 
line  might  be  quickly  formed,  by  a  tingle  manoeuvre. 
General  Harrison,  in  his  subsequent  successful  campaigns, 
in  the  Indian  country,  adopted  the  same  plan,  with  threat 
success,  having  seen  its  operation  in  the  army  of  fifflMlnl 
Wayne. 

In  accordance  with  the  determination  before  expressed, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  159 

the  General  took  up  his  line  of  march  for  the  frontier,  on 
the  7th  of  October,  and  on  the  13th  of  the  same  month, 
arrived  at  a  fork  of  the  south  west  branch  of  the  Miami, 
now  called  Stillwater,  six  miles  in  advance  of  Fort  Jeffer- 
son, in  perfect  order  and  without  an  accident.  Finding 
that  he  could  not  proceed  further,  for  want  of  provisions, 
he  determined  to  halt,  and  encamp  with  his  army  at  that 
point,  which  was  at  an  intermediate  distance  between  Fort 
Jefferson  and  the  fatal  battle-ground  of  1791. 

In  his  letters  to  the  War  Department,  he  repeated  his 
conviction,  that  the  safety  of  the  western  frontier — the 
reputation  of  the  legion — and  the  dignity  of  the  nation  — 
forbade  a  retrograde  movement,  or  the  giving  up  of  an  inch 
of  ground  then  possessed,  till  the  Indians  should  be  com- 
pelled to  sue  for  peace.  He  informed  the  Secretary,  that 
the  greatest  difficulty,  under  which  he  then  labored,  was 
the  want  of  a  sufficient  force,  occasioned  by  the  non-arrival 
of  the  mounted  volunteers,  to  enable  him  to  furnish  escorts, 
to  secure  the  convoys  of  provisions  and  other  supplies, 
from  insult  and  disaster;  and  at  the  same  time,  to  retain 
a  sufficient  force  in  camp,  to  sustain  it  against  the  attacks 
of  the  enemy,  who  appeared  to  be  numerous,  determined, 
and  desperate. 

In  the  same  dispatch,  he  advised  the  Secretary,  that 
Lieutenant  Lowery,  of  the  2d  sub-legion,  and  Ensign  Boyd, 
of  the  1st,  with  a  command  of  ninety  non-commissioned 
officers  and  privates,  having  in  charge  twenty  wagons 
loaded  with  grain,  belonging  to  the  Quartermaster  Gen- 
eral's department,  and  one,  belonging  to  the  Contractor, 
loaded  with  military  stores,  were  attacked  on  the  morning 
of  the  17th  of  October,  near  Fort  St.  Clair,  by  a  very  supe- 
rior number  of  the  enemy;  and  that  those  gallant  young 
officers,  together  with  thirteen  non-commissioned  officers 
and  privates,  who  had  been  abandoned  by  the  greater  part 
of  the  escort,  on  the  first  fire,  were  killed  after  an  obsti- 
nate resistance. 


160  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

On  that  occasion,  the  savages  took  about  seventy  pack- 
horses,  leaving  the  wagons  and  stores  standing  in  the  road, 
which  were  afterwards  brought  into  camp  with  the  loss 
only  of  a  few  trifling  articles.  It  appears  from  the  Execu- 
tive Journal  of  the  Senate,  that  Lieutenant  John  Lowery, 
who  commanded  this  detachment,  was  from  the  State  of 
New  Jersey  —  that  he  had  served  with  reputation  in  the 
levies  of  1791,  under  General  St.  Clair,  and  was,  of  course, 
in  the  desperate  battle  of  November  4th.  It  also  appears 
that,  in  consequence  of  his  good  behavior,  on  that  cam- 
paign, he  received  his  commission  in  the  regular  army. 

The  General,  admonished  by  that  disaster,  immediately 
dispatched  a  company  of  light  infantry,  and  a  troop  of 
dragoons,  to  reinforce  a  detachment  consisting  of  four  com- 
panies of  infantry,  which  had  been  sent  out  under  the 
command  of  Colonel  Hamtramck,  as  an  escort  to  the  wag- 
ons and  pack-horses  of  the  Quartermaster  General,  and  the 
contractor.  Soon  after  this  movement,  information  was 
received  at  head  quarters,  that  the  Indians  at  Au-Glaise 
had  sent  their  women  and  children  into  places  of  safety, 
and  that  the  warriors  were  collecting  in  great  force.  It 
was  understood,  however,  that  they  could  not  continue  em- 
bodied long,  for  the  want  of  provisions. 

In  communicating  that  intelligence,  the  General  advised 
the  War  Department,  that  he  had  then  in  camp,  seventy 
thousand  rations,  and  expected  a  hundred  and  twenty 
thousand  more,  by  the  return  of  the  escort  under  the  com- 
mand of  Colonel  Hamtramck.  As  yet,  General  Wilkinson 
had  not  been  able  to  resume  his  command  in  the  army,  by 
reason  of  his  severe  indisposition ;  and  a  large  number  of 
the  men  reported  on  the  sick  list,  continued  unable  to  per- 
form military  duty. 

The  site,  selected  by  General  Wayne,  for  his  winter 
quarters,  was  a  beautiful  high  plain,  lying  on  one  of  the 
small  streams  which  form  the  Stillwatcr-branch  of  tin'  Big 
Miami  river.     The  encampment  was  called  Greenville,  and 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY. 


161 


gave  name  to  the  creek  on  -which  it  was  built.  It  was 
spacious,  and  the  buildings,  though  constructed  of  logs, 
were  very  commodious  and  comfortable,  and  it  was  so 
strongly  fortified,  as  to  defy  any  assault  that  could  be  made 
on  it  by  the  enemy. 

When  this  work  was  finished,  all  fears  for  the  safety  of 
the  army  were  dismissed,  and  the  General  again  applied 
himself,  with  great  assiduity,  to  instruct  and  improve  his 
troops  in  military  tactics.  It  does  not  appear  that  any  serious 
effort  was  made  to  molest  this  encampment,  or  the  separate 
garrisons  in  its  vicinity,  after  the  affair  of  October,  1793. 
But  on  the  30th  of  June  following,  a  very  severe  and  bloody 
battle  was  fought  under  the  walls  of  Fort  Recovery,  be- 
tween a  detachment  of  American  troops,  consisting  of 
ninety  riflemen  and  fifty  dragoons,  commanded  by  Major 
McMahon,  and  a  very  numerous  body  of  Indians  and  Bri- 
tish, who  at  the  same  instant,  rushed  on  the  detachment, 
and  assailed  the  Fort  on  every  side,  with  great  fury.  They 
were  repulsed,  with  a  heavy  loss,  but  again  rallied  and  re- 
newed the  attack,  keeping  up  a  heavy  and  constant  fire 
during  the  whole  day,  which  was  returned  with  spirit  and 
effect,  by  the  garrison. 

The  succeeding  night  was  foggy  and  dark,  and  gave  the 
Indians  an  opportunity  of  carrying  off  their  dead,  by  torch- 
light, which  occasionally  drew  a  fire  from  the  garrison. 
They,  however,  succeeded  so  well,  that  there  were  but 
eight  or  ten  bodies  left  on  the  ground,  which  were  too  near 
the  garrison  to  be  approached.  On  the  next  morning, 
McMahon's  detachment  having  entered  the  Fort,  the  enemy 
renewed  the  attack,  and  continued  it  with  great  despera- 
tion during  the  day,  but  were  ultimately  compelled  to  re- 
treat from  the  same  field,  on  which  they  had  been  proudly 
victorious  on  the  4th  November,  1791. 

The   expectation  of  the   assailants  must  have  been  to 
surprise  the  post,  and  carry  it  by  storm,  for  they  could  not 
possibly  have  received  intelligence  of  the  movement  of  the 
11 


162  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

escort,  under  Major  McMahon,  which  only  marched  from 
Greenville,  on  the  morning  preceding,  and  on  the  same 
evening,  deposited  in  Fort  Recovery,  the  supplies  it  had 
convoyed.  That  occurrence  could  not,  therefore,  have  led 
to  the  movement  of  the  savages. 

Judging  from  the  extent  of  their  encampment,  and  their 
line  of  march,  in  seventeen  columns,  forming  a  wide  and 
extended  front,  and  from  other  circumstances,  it  was  be- 
lieved, their  numbers  could  not  have  been  less  than  from 
fifteen  hundred  to  two  thousand  warriors.  It  was  also  be- 
lieved, that  they  were  in  want  of  provisions,  as  they  had 
killed  and  eaten,  a  number  of  pack-horses  in  their  encamp- 
ment, the  evening  after  the  assault,  and  also,  at  their  en- 
campment on  their  return,  seven  miles  from  Recovery, 
where  they  remained  two  nights,  having  been  much  en- 
cumbered with  their  dead  and  wounded. 

From  the  official  return  of  Major  Mills,  Adjutant  General 
of  the  army,  it  appears  that  twenty- two  officers  and  non- 
commissioned officers  were  killed,  and  thirty  wounded. 
Among  the  former,  were  Major  McMahon,  Captain  Harts- 
horn, and  Lieutenant  Craig;  and  among  the  wounded, 
Captain  Taylor  of  the  dragoons,  and  Lieutenant  Drake,  of 
the  legion.  Captain  Gibson,  who  commanded  the  Fort, 
behaved  with  great  gallantry,  and  received  the  thanks  of 
the  Commander-in-chief,  as  did  every  officer  and  soldier  of 
the  garrison,  and  the  escort,  who  were  engaged  in  that 
most  gallant  and  successful  defence. 

Immediately  after  the  enemy  had  retreated,  it  was  ascer- 
tained, that  their  loss  had  been  very  heavy,  but  the  full 
extent  of  it  was  not  known  till  it  was  disclosed  at  the 
treaty  of  Greenville.  References  were  made  to  that  battle, 
by  several  of  the  chiefs  in  council,  from  which  it  was  man- 
ifest, that  they  had  not,  even  then,  ceased  to  mourn  the 
distressing  losses  sustained  on  that  occasion.  Having 
made  the  attack  with  a  determination  to  carry  the  Tort,  or 
perish  in  the   attempt,  they  exposed  their  persons   in  an 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  163 

unusual  degree,  and  of  course,  a  large  number  of  the 
bravest  of  their  chiefs  and  warriors,  perished  before  they 
abandoned  the  enterprise. 

From  the  facts  afterwards  communicated  to  the  General, 
it  was  satisfactorily  ascertained  that  there  were  a  consid- 
erable number  of  British  soldiers  and  Detroit  militia  en- 
gaged with  the  savages,  on  that  occasion.  A  few  days 
previous  to  that  affair,  the  General  had  sent  out  three  small 
parties  of  Chickasaw  and  Choctaw  Indians,  to  take  prison- 
ers, for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  information.  One  of  those 
parties  returned  to  Greenville  on  the  28th,  and  reported, 
that  they  had  fallen  in  with  a  large  body  of  Indians,  at 
Girty's  town,  (crossing  of  the  St.  Mary's,)  on  the  evening 
of  the  27th  of  June,  apparently  bending  their  course  to- 
wards Chillicothe,  on  the  Miami;  and  that  there  were  a 
great  many  white  men  with  them.  The  other  two  parties, 
followed  the  trail  of  the  hostile  Indians,  and  were  in  sight, 
when  the  assault  on  the  post  commenced.  They  affirmed, 
one  and  all,  that  there  were  a  large  number  of  armed  white 
men,  with  painted  faces,  whom  they  frequently  heard  con- 
versing in  English,  and  encouraging  the  Indians  to  perse- 
vere; and  that  there  were  also  three  British  officers,  dressed 
in  scarlet,  who  appeared  to  be  men  of  distinction,  from  the 
great  attention  and  respect  which  was  paid  to  them.  These 
persons  kept  at  a  distance,  in  the  rear  of  the  assailants. 
Another  strong  corroborating  proof,  that  there  were  British 
soldiers  and  militia  in  the  assault,  is,  that  a  number  of 
ounce-balls  and  buck-shot  were  found  lodged  in  the  block- 
houses and  stockades  of  the  fort;  and  that  others  were 
picked  up  on  the  ground,  fired  at  such  a  distance  as  not  to 
have  momentum  sufficient  to  enter  the  logs. 

It  was  supposed  that  the  British  engaged  in  the  attack, 
expected  to  find  the  artillery  that  was  lost  on  the  fatal  4th 
of  November,  which  had  been  hid  in  the  ground  and  cover- 
ed with  logs,  by  the  Indians,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  battle- 
field.    This  inference  was  supported  by  the  fact,  that  dur- 


164  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ing  the  conflict,  they  were  seen  turning  over  logs,  and  ex- 
amining different  places,  in  the  neighborhood,  as  if  search- 
ing for  something.  There  were  many  reasons  for  believing, 
that  they  depended  on  that  artillery,  to  aid  in  the  reduction 
of  the  fort;  but  fortunately,  most  of  it  had  been  previously 
found  by  its  legitimate  owners,  and  was  then  employed  in 
its  defence. 

James  Neill,  a  pack-horse  man  in  the  American  service, 
who  was  taken  prisoner  by  the  Indians,  during  the  attack, 
and  tied  to  a  stump,  about  half  a  mile  from  the  fort,  after 
his  return,  stated  to  the  General,  that  the  enemy  lost  a 
great  number  in  killed  and  wounded;  that  while  he  was  at 
the  stump,  he  saw  about  twenty  of  their  dead,  and  a  great 
many  wounded,  carried  off.  He  understood  there  were 
fifteen  hundred  Indians  and  white  men,  in  the  attack ;  and 
on  their  return  to  the  Miami,  the  Indians  stated,  that  no 
men  ever  fought  better  than  they  did  at  Recovery;  and 
that  their  party  lost  twice  as  many  men  in  that  attack,  as 
they  did  at  St.  Clair's  defeat. 

Soon  after  the  battle,  two  Pottawattamies,  captured  north 
of  the  Miami  of  the  Lake,  and  two  Shawanees,  taken 
twenty  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  Grand  Glaise,  were 
brought  into  camp  and  examined;  from  whose  statements 
it  appeared  most  evidently,  that  the  British  had  been  using 
every  possible  exertion,  to  collect  the  warriors  of  distant 
nations,  by  the  most  solemn  promises,  that  they  would 
march  and  co-operate  with  them,  against  the  American 
army,  fhe  disclosures  made  by  those  prisoners,  produced 
a  belief,  that  the  Spaniards  had  also  been  tampering  with 
the  savages,  to  the  prejudice  of  the  American  cause.  From 
those  discoveries,  it  seemed  to  be  a  natural  conclusion, 
that  the  legion  would  meet  a  very  mongrel  body,  of  virions 
colors,  in  the  vicinity  of  Grand  Glaise,  or  at  Roche  de  Bauf, 
tm  the  case  might  be. 

The    Pottawattamie    prisoners,    on    their    examination, 
which    was   on  the  5th  of  June,  stated,   that   they    were 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  105 

captured  four  days  after  they  left  their  homes ;  that  their 
nation,  at  the  first  of  the  last  moon,  received  an  invitation 
from-the  British,  sent  by  a  Delaware,  a  Shawanee,  and  a 
Miami  chief,  to  join  them,  and  go  to  war  against  the 
Americans.  That  those  chiefs  assured  them,  they  had  been 
sent  for  that  purpose ;  that  the  British,  about  four  hundred 
in  number,  with  two  field  pieces,  were  then  at  Roche  de 
Bceuf,  on  their  way  to  war  against  the  Americans ;  and  that 
this  was  exclusive  of  the  Detroit  militia.  They  also  said 
that  a  fortification  had  been  made  around  Colonel  McKee's 
house,  at  that  place,  in  which  they  had  deposited  all  their 
stores  of  ammunition,  arms,  clothing,  and  provisions ;  from 
which  they  promised  to  supply  the  Indians  in  abundance, 
provided  they  would  join  them  and  go  to  war. 

They  further  stated,  that  the  Chippewas,  Wyandots, 
Shawanees,  Ottawas,  Delawares,  and  Miamies,  assembled 
on  the  1st  of  May,  were  about  one  thousand;  that  they 
were  coming  in  daily,  from  all  those  nations,  and  that 
from  the  latest  and  best  information  received,  and  from 
their  own  knowledge  of  the  number  of  warriors  belonging 
to  those  nations,  there  could  not  be  less  than  two  thousand, 
then  assembled;  and  that  if  the  Pottawattamies  had  joined 
them,  agreeably  to  invitation,  the  whole  number  would 
amount  to  upwards  of  three  thousand.  These  warriors, 
they  supposed,  would  be  joined  by  fifteen  hundred  British 
troops  and  militia,  according  to  the  promise  of  Governor 
Simcoe.  They  also  said,  that  the  Indians  intended  to  at- 
tack the  legion,  about  the  last  of  that  moon,  or  the  begin- 
ning of  the  next;  that  Governor  Simcoe,  the  Great  Man 
who  lived  at  Niagara,  sent  for  the  Pottawattamies,  and 
promised  them  arms,  munition,  provisions,  and  clothing, 
and  every  thing  they  wanted,  provided  they  would  join 
him;  that  he  had  sent  them  the  same  message  during  the 
preceding  winter,  and  again  on  the  first  of  the  last  moon. 

They  added,  that  he  thanked  them  for  their  past  ser- 
vices, and  declared  he  would  help  them  to  fight,  and  ren- 


166  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

der  them  all  the  service  in  his  power — that  all  the  speeches 
they  had  received  from  him,  were  as  red  as  blood — that  the 
wampum  and  feathers  and  war  pipes  and  hatchets,  were 
painted  red — and  finally,  that  their  tribe  had  received  four 
different  invitations,  from  Governor  Simcoe,  to  join  in  the 
war;  the  last  of  which  was  on  the  first  of  the  last  moon, 
when  the  Governor  promised  to  join  them,  with  fifteen  hun- 
dred of  his  warriors. 

The  Shaw  anees,, who  had  been  captured  on  the  22d  of 
June,  stated  that  five  moons  had  passed,  since  they  left  the 
Grand  Glaise — that  they  belonged  to  a  party  of  twenty, 
who  had  been  hunting  all  the  spring,  on  the  waters  of  the 
Wabash,  nearly  opposite  the  mouth  of  the  Kentucky  river, 
and  were  on  their  return  when  taken — that  about  half  their 
party  had  gone  on  before  them,  and  the  remainder  were 
coming  on  slowly ;  hunting  as  they  came — that  they  had  sto- 
len about  fifty  horses  from  the  people  of  Kentucky,  on  Salt 
river,  during  the  spring  and  summer — that  they  only  killed 
one  man,  and  took  no  prisoners — that  the  man  was  killed 
by  a  white  interpreter,  belonging  to  their  party — that  they 
themselves  had  five  horses  loaded  with  deer,  and  bear-skins, 
and  jerked  venison — that  on  their  way  in,  they  met  with  a 
party  of  four  Indians,  three  of  them  Delawares  and  one  a 
Pottawattamie,  who  were  then  on  their  way  to  Big  Bone 
Lick,  to  steal  horses — that  this  party  informed  them,  that 
all  the  Indians  on  White  river  were  sent  for,  to  come  imme- 
diately to  Grand  Glaise,  where  the  warriors  of  several  na- 
tions were  assembled — that  the  chiefs  were  then  in  council, 
and  would  not  let  their  warriors  go  out — saying,  that  they 
could  not  depend  on  the  British  for  effectual  support — that 
they  were  always  setting  the  Indians  on,  like  dogs  after 
game;  pressing  them  to  go  to  war,  and  kill  the  Amei leans, 
but  did  not  help  them — and,  that,  unless  they  would  turn 
out,  they  were  determined  to  make  peace ;  and  not  be  any 
longer  amused  with  empty  promises. 

They  further  stated,  that  the  Shawanecs  had  three  hun- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  *         167 

dred  and  eighty  warriors,  who  lived  in  the  vicinity  of  Grand 
Glaise ;  and  that  they  could  bring  into  action  about  three 
hundred  of  them.  Their  great  men,  or  Sachems,  were:  the 
Black  Wolf,  and  Kikia-pi-la-thy,  or  Tame  Hawk.  Their 
principal  warriors  were  Blue  Jacket  and  Captain  Johnny. 
They  said  further,  that  the  Delawares  had,  at  Grand  Glaise, 
four  hundred  and  eighty  warriors — that  there  were  actually 
in  the  action  against  General  St.  Clair,  four  hundred  of  that 
tribe — that  the  Miamies  numbered  about  one  hundred  war- 
riors living  near  the  Grand  Glaise;  many  of  that  nation 
having  moved  towards  Post  Vincennes,  and  the  Mississippi 
— that  the  Wyandots  never  send  into  action  more  than  one 
hundred  and  fifty  warriors — that  they  themselves,  lived 
along  the  lake,  towards  Sandusky,  and  did  not  know  the 
number  of  the  Pottawattamie s,  or  of  the  other  nations  who 
would  join  in  the  war,  should  they  determine  to  continue 
it — that  the  Chippewas  would  be  the  most  numerous,  and 
were  then  on  their  way  to  the  council ;  but  that  war,  or 
peace,  depended  on  the  conduct  of  the  British.  If  they 
would  help  the  Indians,  it  wTould  be  war ;  but  if  not,  it 
would  probably  be  peace.  That  the  Indians  would  no 
longer  be  set  on,  like  dogs  to  fight;  unless  the  British 
would  help  them.  That  the  British  were  at  the  foot  of 
the  Rapids,  where  they  had  fortified — that  there  were  a 
great  number  of  their  soldiers  at  that  place,  who  told  the 
Indians  they  were  come  to  help  them  fight,  and  that  if  they 
(the  Indians)  would  generally  turn  out,  they  would  join 
them,  and  fight  the  American  army.  Blue  Jacket,  they 
said,  had  been  sent  to  the  Chippewas  and  the  northern  In- 
dians, to  invite  them  to  Roche  de  Boeuf,  to  join  in  the  war. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

Gen.  Wayne's  campaign  of  1794. — Battle  of  the  20th  of  August,  at  .*  foot 
of  the  Rapids. — Gen.  Wayne's  correspondence  with  the  commandanfcf  the 
British  Fort. — Army  return  to  Fort  Defiance. — From  thence  to  the  iumi 
villages. — Fort  Wayne  built. — Kentucky  volunteers  discharged. — R«  ie  of 
the  army  proceed  to  Greenville. — Note. — The  number  and  tribes  of  •  In- 
dians engaged  in  the  battle  of  the  20th  of  August. — Aid  furnished  t>m  by 
the  British. — Influence  of  British  agents  ascertained. 

The  American  army  continued  in  their  encampmer,  at 
Greenville,  which  was  in  reality  a  military  school  for  oth 
officers  and  soldiers,  till  about  midsummer;  when,  h-  ing 
been  joined  by  the  mounted  volunteers  from  Kent  iky, 
arrangements  were  made  for  advancing  into  the  Inian 
country.  It  had  been  apprehended  that  the  heavy  lea  of 
pack-horses  in  the  attacks  at  Fort  St.  Clair  and  Reco  ray, 
would  retard  the  advance  of  the  legion;  but  it  was  on 
understood,  that  the  General  had  made  provision,  u  his 
arrangements,  for  such  losses  and  contingencies,  whic  he 
knew,  from  the  nature  of  the  service,  were  to  be  expec-d, 
and  would  unavoidably  happen.  There  was  therefor  no 
embarrassment  or  delay  produced  by  those  disasters. 

With  a  view  of  perplexing  the  enemy,  in  regard  to  lis 
movements,  the  General  made  such  demonstrations,  bore 
he  took  up  his  line  of  march,  as  would  induce  the  savaes 
to  expect  him  to  advance,  either  by  the  route  of  the  Mimi 
villages  on  the  left,  or  in  the  direction  of  the  foot  of  ie 
Rapids  on  the  right.  Those  feints  produced  the  desied 
effect,  by  drawing  the  attention  of  the  enemy  to  thee 
routes,  by  which  he  was  enabled  to  approach  undiscoveid, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  16g 

by  a  entral  course,  which  was  impracticable  for  an  army, 
excer  in  a  very  dry  season. 

By  hat  expedient,  though  he  halted  at  Girty's  town,  at 
the  onsing  of  the  St.  Mary's,  twenty-four  miles  in  advance 
of  Gsenville,  a  sufficient  length  of  time  to  build  Fort 
Adai?,  on  the  bank  of  that  stream,  he  was  enabled  to 
compete  his  march,  unobserved,  till  he  arrived  almost  in 
sight  f  Au  Glaise,  the  great  emporium  of  the  enemy;  of 
whic  he  took  possession  on  the  8th  of  August,  without  the 
loss  c"  a  single  man.  On  the  preceding  evening  the 
enen1  abandoned  their  settlements  and  villages,  with  such 
appa?nt  marks  of  surprise  and  precipitation,  as  convinced 
ever  ->ody,  that  the  approach  of  the  legion  was  not  dis- 
cove?d  until  a  few  hours  before  its  arrival,  when  the  fact 
was  ommunicated  by  Newman,  who  deserted  from  the 
arm-it  St.  Mary's. 

It  vas  manifest  that  the  defection  of  that  villain  enabled 
the  liana  to  Bave  their  persons  by  a  rapid  flight;  leaving 
all  tnir  property  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Americans. 
The  xtensive  and  highly  cultivated  fields,  and  gardens, 
whic  appeared  on  every  side,  exhibited  the  work  of  many 
The  margins  of  the  beautiful  rivers,  Au  Glaise  and 
Mian,  had  the  appearance  of  a  continued  village,  for 
sevc?l  miles  above  and  below  their  junction.  They  were 
coy  I  with  extensive  cornfields,  and  gardens,  containing 
a  grat  variety  of  vegetable  productions. 

first  duty  of  the  General,  after  taking  possession  of 
the  untry,  was  to  erect  a  strong  stockade  fort,  with  four 
bloc  houses,  by  way  of  bastions,  at  the  confluence  of  the 
rivei  which  he  named  Fort  Defiance. 

It  ad  been  ascertained  by  the  most  recent  intelligence, 
that  le  enemy  were  collected  at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids,  in 
grec  force — that  they  had  been  joined  by  the  Detroit 
milia,  and  a  portion  of  the  regular  army;  and  that  they 
had  elected,  for  the  contest,  an  elevated  plain,  near  the 
foo    f  the    Rapids,   over  which    a  tornado    had  recently 


170  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

passed,  and  covered  the  ground  with  fallen  timber,  by 
which  it  was  rendered  unfavorable  for  the  action  of  cav- 
alry. This  information,  unpleasant  as  it  was,  did  not 
excite  any  serious  apprehension,  or  in  the  least  degree  cool 
the  spirit  and  ardor  of  the  troops.  On  the  contrary, 
among  the  officers  and  privates,  both  of  the  legion  and  the 
mounted  volunteers,  there  was  but  one  aspiration  heard, 
and  that  was  to  meet  the  enemy.  Yet  the  commanding 
General,  influenced  by  feelings  of  humanity,  and  anxious 
to  prevent  the  consequences  of  the  deadly  conflict,  which 
was  about  to  commence,  resolved,  on  his  own  responsi- 
bility, to  offer  the  enemy  a  last  overture  of  peace. 

As  they  had  every  thing  dear  and  interesting  at  stake* 
there  was  some  reason  to  expect  they  would  listen  to  over- 
tures of  a  conciliatory  character.  Under  that  impression  he 
sent  to  them  an  address,  by  a  special  flag,  containing  pro- 
positions of  the  most  amicable  nature;  but  couched  in 
firm  and  fearless  terms.  He  informed  them  that  he  was  not 
only  the  Commander-in-chief  of  the  army,  but  was  a  Com- 
missioner Plenipotentiary  of  the  United  States  of  America, 
for  settling  the  terms  upon  which  a  permanent  and  lasting 
peace  might  be  made,  with  each  of  the  hostile  tribes,  north- 
west of  the  Ohio ;  that  the  United  States  were  actuated 
by  the  purest  principles  of  humanity,  and  were  desirous  of 
showing'them  the  errors  into  which  bad,  and  designing  men 
had  led  them. 

He  told  them,  that,  although  at  the  head  of  his  army,  he 
was  in  possession  of  their  beautiful  villages,  and  highly 
cultivated  settlements,  yet  he  was  prepared  to  restore 
them,  uninjured,  to  their  former  occupants;  and  therefore 
once  more  extended  to  them  the  friendly  hand  of  peace ; 
and  invited  each  and  all  of  the  hostile  tribes  to  appoint 
deputies  to  meet  him  without  delay,  between  that  place 
and  Roche  de  Bceuf,  to  settle  the  preliminaries  of  a  lasting 
peace;  which  would  restore  to  them  their  lost  possessions, 
and  preserve  them,  and  their  distressed  women  and  chil- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  171 

dren,  from  danger  and  from  famine,  during  the  approach- 
ing winter.  That,  although  the  arm  of  the  United  States 
was  strong  and  powerful,  yet  they  loved  mercy  and  peace, 
more  than  war  and  desolation. 

For  the  purpose  of  removing  any  apprehension  of  dan- 
ger, to  the  deputies  who  might  be  selected  to  meet  him,  he 
pledged  his  sacred  honor,  and  offered  hostages  for  their  safe 
return.  He  informed  them  that  his  flag  was  borne  by  C. 
Miller,  an  adopted  Shawanee,  who  had  been  captured  six 
moons  ago,  and  a  native  Shawanee  warrior,  who  had  been 
taken  prisoner  two  days  before,  and  who  would  testify  to 
the  kindness  shown  to  them,  and  to  their  people,  who  were 
prisoners  at  Greenville,  consisting  of  five  warriors  and  two 
women;  but  that  if  his  invitation  should  be  treated  with 
insult,  and  the  bearers  of  the  flag  be  detained  or  injured, 
he  would  immediately  order  all  those  prisoners  to  be  put  to 
death,  without  distinction;  although  some  of  them  were 
known  to  belong  to  the  best  families  of  their  tribes. 

The  General  exhorted  them  no  longer  to  be  deceived  and 
led  astray,  by  the  false  promises  of  bad  white  men,  at  the 
foot  of  the  Rapids,  who  had  neither  the  power  nor  the  incli- 
nation to  protect  them.  He  urged  them  no  longer  to  shut 
their  eyes  to  their  true  interest  and  happiness,  nor  their  ears 
to  this  last  overture  of  peace.  He  entreated  them,  in  pity 
to  their  innocent  women  and  children,  to  meet  him,  and 
prevent  the  further  effusion  of  their  blood ;  in  which  event 
they  should  experience  the  kindness  and  friendship  of  the 
United  States,  and  the  invaluable  blessings  of  peace  and 
tranquillity.  But  should  they  choose  the  other  alternative, 
their  blood,  and  the  blood  of  their  women  and  children, 
would  be  on  their  own  heads. 

The  works  of  defence  at  Defiance  being  completed,  and 
the  last  propositions  for  peace,  being  unanswered  by  the 
enemy,  the  General  published  a  manifesto,  in  which  he  de- 
clared with  great  solemnity,  that  he  had  exhausted  all  the 
means  in  his  power,  to  obtain  peace — that  the  United  States 


172  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

should  no  longer  be  insulted  with  impunity,  and  that  in  the 
approaching  conflict,  he  committed  himself  and  his  gallant 
army,  to  the  keeping  of  an  all-powerful  and  just  God. 

On  the  next  morning,  15th  August,  the  legion  moved  for- 
ward towards  the  foot  of  the  Rapids,  where  the  British  had 
a  regular  fortification,  constructed  on  the  most  approved 
principles  of  modern  military  architecture,  well  supplied 
with  artillery,  and  strongly  garrisoned,  in  the  vicinity  of 
which,  the  fate  of  the  campaign  was  about  to  be  decided. 
On  the  16th,  the  General  met  his  flag,  returning  from  the 
enemy's  camp,  with  an  evasive  answer,  for  the  purpose  of 
gaining  time. 

On  the  18th,  the  army  arrived  at  Roche  de  Bceuf,  and 
during  the  19th,  they  were  employed  in  making  a  tempo- 
rary fort,  for  the  reception  of  their  stores  and  baggage ;  and 
in  reconnoitering  the  position  of  the  enemy,  who  were  en- 
camped on  Swan  creek,  in  the  rear  of  the  British  fort,  and 
behind  a  thick  brushwood. 

At  eight  o'clock  on  the  following  morning,  20th  August, 
the  army  again  advanced  in  column,  agreeably  to  the  stan- 
ding order  of  march,  to  wit :  The  legion  on  the  right, 
having  its  right  covered  by  the  river.  One  brigade  of 
mounted  volunteers  on  the  left,  under  Brigadier  General 
Todd,  and  the  other  in  the  rear  under  General  Barbie.  A 
select  battalion  of  mounted  volunteers,  moved  in  front  of 
the  legion,  commanded  by  Major  Price,  who  was  directed 
to  keep  sufficiently  advanced,  to  give  timely  notice  for  the 
troops  to  form,  in  case  of  an  attack.  After  advancing  about 
five  miles,  Major  Price's  corps  received  so  severe  a  fire  from 
the  enemy,  secreted  in  the  woods  and  high  grass,  as  to  com- 
pel them  to  retreat. 

The  legion  was  immediately  formed  in  two  lines,  princi- 
pally in  a  thick  wood,  which  extended  some  miles  on  the 
left,  and  a  considerable  distance  in  front.  The  ground  was 
covered  with  fallen  timber,  occasioned  by  a  tornado,  which 
passed  over  the  country  a  year  or  two  before,  and  rendered 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  173 

it  impracticable  for  the  cavalry  to  act  with  effect,  while  it 
afforded  the  enemy  the  best  possible  protection  in  their 
mode  of  warfare.  The  savages  were  formed  in  three  lines, 
within  supporting  distance  of  each  other,  and  extended 
nearly  two  miles,  at  right  angles  with  the  river. 

It  was  soon  discovered,  from  the  weight  of  the  fire,  and 
extent  of  their  lines,  that  the  enemy  in  front,  were  in  pos- 
session of  their  favorite  ground  in  full  force,  and  were  en- 
deavoring to  turn  the  American  left.  The  General,  there- 
fore, ordered  the  second  line  to  advance  and  support  the 
first,  with  the  whole  of  the  mounted  volunteers.  He  also 
directed  Major  General  Scott,  to  gain  and  turn  the  right 
flank  of  the  savages,  by  a  circuitous  route,  and  at  the  same 
time  ordered  the  front  line  to  advance — charge  the  Indians, 
with  trailed  arms,  and  drive  them  from  their  covert  at  the 
point  of  the  bayonet ;  and  as  soon  as  they  rose,  to  deliver 
a  close  and  well  directed  fire  on  their  backs,  followed  by  a 
brisk  charge,  so  as  not  to  suffer  them  to  load  a  second  time. 
Captain  Campbell,  who  commanded  the  legionary  cav- 
alry, was  ordered  to  turn  the  left  flank  of  the  enemy,  next 
to  the  river,  which  afforded  a  favorable  field  for  that  corps 
to  act  in. 

All  those  orders  were  obeyed  with  spirit  and  promptitude, 
but  such  was  the  impetuosity  of  the  charge,  by  the  first  line 
of  infantry,  that  the  Indians,  Canadian  militia,  and  volun- 
teers, were  driven  from  all  their  coverts  in  so  short  a  time, 
that  although  every  possible  effort  was  made  by  the  offi- 
cers of  the  second  line  of  the  legion,  and  by  Generals  Scott, 
Todd,  and  Barbie,  of  the  mounted  volunteers,  to  gain  their 
proper  position,  only  a  part  of  each  could  get  up  in  season 
to  participate  in  the  action;  the  enemy  having  been  driven 
in  the  course  of  one  hour,  more  than  two  miles  through  the 
thick  woods,  by  a  force  less  than  one-half  of  their  own. 

Their  number  was  estimated  at  two  thousand  combat- 
ants; the   troops    actually  engaged   aginst  them,  did  not 


174  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

exceed  nine  hundred,  yet  the  savages  and  their  allies  aban- 
doned themselves  to  flight,  and  escaped  in  all  directions, 
leaving  the  victors  in  full  and  quiet  possession  of  the  field 
of  battle.  The  conflict  terminated  in  sight  of  the  British 
Fort,  and,  as  it  were,  under  the  very  muzzles  of  their  can- 
non. After  Captain  Campbell  had  succeeded  in  turning 
the  left  flank  of  the  Indians,  their  retreat  through  the  woods 
was  cut  off,  and  they  were  compelled  to  take  to  the  river, 
through  an  open  prairie,  which  gave  the  cavalry  a  fine  op- 
portunity to  show  their  skill  and  courage.  In  that  flight, 
many  of  the  savages  were  cut  down  on  the  prairie  and 
in  the  river,  into  which  they  were  pursued. 

During  the  conflict,  Captain  Campbell,  of  the  dragoons, 
being  killed,  and  Captain  Solomon  Van  Rennselaer  of  the 
same  corps,  being  shot  through  the  body  by  a  ball,  which 
entered  the  pit  of  his  stomach,  the  command  of  that  corps 
devolved  on  Lieutenant  Covington,  who  cut  down  two 
savages  with  his  own  hand,  when  turning  their  left  flank. 

The  bravery  and  good  conduct  of  every  officer  belonging 
to  the  army,  from  the  General  down,  merited,  and  received 
the  approbation  of  the  Commander-in-chief.  There  were 
some,  however,  whose  duty  and  situation  placed  them  in 
very  conspicuous  positions ;  among  whom,  were  Brigadier 
General  Wilkinson,  and  Colonel  Hamtramck,  the  comman- 
dants of  the  right  and  left  wings  of  the  legion,  who 
were  noticed  accordingly.  In  addition  to  these,  the  General 
paid  a  very  high  compliment  to  his  gallant  aids,  De  Buts, 
Lewis,  and  Harrison,  and  to  the  Adjutant  General,  Major 
Mills,  each  of  whom  had  rendered  the  most  essential  ser- 
vice, by  communicating  his  orders  in  every  direction,  and 
exciting  and  animating  the  troops,  by  their  conduct  and 
bravery. 

Captains  Lewis  and  Brock,  and  the  companies  of  light 
infantry  they  commanded,  had  to  sustain  an  unequal  Bre 
for  some  time,  which  they  did  with  fortitude.     The  wounds 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  175 

received  by  Captains  Slough  and  Prior,  and  Lieutenant 
Campbell  Smith,  an  extra  aid  to  General  Wilkinson,  of  the 
legionary  infantry,  and  those  received  by  Captain  Van 
Rennselaer,  of  the  dragoons,  and  by  Captain  Rawlins, 
Lieutenant  McKinney,  and  Ensign  Duncan,  of  the  mounted 
volunteers,  were  reported,  as  bearing  honorable  testimony 
of  their  bravery  and  their  conduct.  In  short,  every  officer 
and  soldier  who  had  an  opportunity  of  coming  into  action, 
displayed  that  true  bravery,  which  always  insures  success. 
Among  the  gallant  dead  who  fell  on  that  memorable  day, 
Captain  Campbell  of  the  dragoons,  and  Lieutenant  Towles 
of  the  infantry  of  the  legion,  who  were  killed  in  the  first 
charge,  were  remembered  and  named  with  high  praise. 

From  the  return  of  the  Adjutant  General,  it  appears  that 
the  number  of  Americans  killed  on  that  occasion,  including 
those  who  died  of  their  wounds,  was  thirty-nine,  two  of 
whom  were  commissioned  officers;  and  the  number  of 
wounded,  one  hundred,  including  seven  commissioned 
officers. 

The  loss  of  the  enemy  was  estimated  at  more  than  dou- 
ble the  loss  of  the  Americans.  The  woods  were  strewed, 
for  a  considerable  distance,  with  their  dead  bodies,  and  the 
bodies  of  their  white  auxiliaries,  armed  with  British  mus- 
kets and  bayonets.  A  large  number  fell  on  the  prairie,  in 
their  attempt  to  gain  the  river,  and  several  were  cut  down 
by  the  cavalry,  and  others  shot,  in  the  midst  of  the  stream. 

The  army  remained  three  days  and  nights,  in  front  of 
the  battle-field,  during  which  time,  all  the  houses  and  corn- 
fields were  destroyed,  for  many  miles,  both  above  and  be- 
low the  Fort,  and  some  within  pistol-shot  of  it.  The  gar- 
rison thought  it  prudent  to  remain  quiet  spectators  of  the 
devastation  and  conflagration,  not  only  of  the  improve- 
ments and  property  of  the  savages,  but  of  the  houses  and 
stores  of  Colonel  McKee,  the  British  agent,  and  principal 
stimulator  of  the  war  then  existing;  although  it  was  well 


176  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

known,  that  those  stores  were  the  property  of  the  British 
nation,  sent  to  that  place  to  sustain  the  Indians  in  their 
warfare  against  the  United  States. 

During  the  time  the  army  remained  at  the  foot  of 
the  Rapids,  after  the  battle,  General  Wayne,  in  company 
with  three  or  four  of  his  officers,  including  General  Wilkin- 
son and  Lieutenant  Harrison,  approached  the  British  Fort, 
and  examined  it  critically,  from  different  positions,  on  every 
side.  He  found  it  to  be  a  regular  military  work  of  great 
strength,  the  front  covered  by  a  wide  river,  with  five  guns 
mounted.  The  rear,  which  was  most  susceptible  of  ap- 
proach, had  two  regular  bastions  furnished  with  eight  pie- 
ces of  artillery,  the  whole  surrounded  by  a  deep  ditch, 
with  horizontal  pickets  projecting  from  the  parapet  over 
the  ditch.  From  the  bottom  of  the  ditch  to  the  top  of  the 
parapet,  was  about  twenty  feet  perpendicular.  The  works 
were  also  surrounded  by  an  abatis,  and  furnished  with  a 
numerous  garrison ;  yet  the  General  manifested  a  strong 
desire  to  storm  it,  and  it  was  the  opinion  of  those  who 
were  with  him,  that  he  sought  to  provoke  the  British  com- 
mandant to  some  hostile  step,  that  would  have  justified 
such  a  movement.  The  close  inspection  of  the  British  Fort, 
by  the  American  officers,  led  to  the  following  correspon- 
dence between  Major  Campbell  and  General  Wayne : 


MAJOR    CAMPBELL    TO    GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Miami  River,  Aug.  21st,  1794. 

Sir  :  An  army  of  the  United  States  of  America,  said  to  be  under  your  com- 
mand, having  taken  post  on  the  bunks  of  the  Miami,  for  upwards  of  'he  last 
twenty-four  hours,  almost  within  the  reach  of  the  guns  of  this  Fort,  being  a 
post  belonging  to  his  Majesty,  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  occupied  by  bis 
Majesty's  troops,  and  which  I  have  the  honor  to  command,  it  becomes  m\ 
duty  to  inform  myself,  as  speedily  as  possible,  in  what  light  I  am  to  view  your 
making  such  near  approaches  to  this  garrison.      I  have  no  hesitation,  on  my 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  177 

part,  to  say,  that   I  know  of  no   war   existing   between  Great   Britain  and 
America. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient,  and  very  humble  servant, 

WILLIAM  CAMPBELL, 
Major  24th  Regiment,  commanding  a  British  Post 
on  the  Bank  of  the  Miami. 
To  Major  General  Wayne,  etc. 


GENERAL    WAYNE    TO    MAJOR    CAMPBELL. 

Camp  on  the  banks  of  the  Miami,) 
August  21st,  1794.      ) 

Sir  : — I  have  received  your  letter  of  this  date,  requiring  from  me  the  mo- 
tives which  have  moved  the  army  under  my  command,  to  the  position  they  at 
present  occupy,  far  within  the  acknowledged  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States 
of  America. 

Without  questioning  the  authority,  or  the  propriety,  Sir,  of  your  interroga- 
tory, I  think  I  may,  without  breach  of  decorum,  observe  to  you,  that  were 
you  entitled  to  an  answer,  the  most  full  and  satisfactory  one  was  announced 
to  you,  from  the  muzzles  of  my  small  arms,  yesterday  morning,  in  the  action 
against  the  hordes  of  savages  in  the  vicinity  of  your  post,  which  terminated 
gloriously  to  the  American  arms;  but  had  it  continued  till  the  Indians,  etc. 
were  driven  under  the  influence  of  the  post  and  guns  you  mention,  they 
would  not  have  much  impeded  the  progress  of  the  victorious  army  under  my 
command,  as  no  such  post  was  established  at  the  commencement  of  the  present 
war,  between  the  Indians  and  the  United  States. 
I  have  the  honor  to  be,  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 

ANTHONY  WAYNE, 
Major  General,  and  Commander-in-chief  of 
the  Federal  Army. 
To  Major  William  Campbell,  etc. 


MAJOR    CAMPBELL    TO    GENERAL    WAYNE. 

Miami  Fort,  August  22d,  1794. 

Sir  : — Although  your  letter  of  yesterday's  date  fully  authorises  me  to  any 
act  of  hostility  against  the  army  of  the  United  States  of  America,  in  this 
neighborhood,  under  your  command,  yet,  still  anxious  to  prevent  that  dread- 
12 


178  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ful  decision,  which,  perhaps,  is  not  intended  to  be  appealed  to,  by  either  of  our 
countries,  I  have  forborne  for  these  two  days  past,  to  resent  the  insults  you 
have  offered  the  British  flag,  flying  at  this  Fort,  by  approaching  it  within  pis- 
tol shot  of  my  works,  not  only  singly,  but  in  numbers,  with  arms  in  their 
hands.  Neither  is  it  my  wish  to  wage  war  with  individuals,  but  should  you, 
after  this,  continue  to  approach  my  post  in  the  threatening  manner  you  are  at 
this  moment  doing,  my  indispensable  duty  to  my  king  and  country,  and  the 
honor  of  my  profession,  will  oblige  me  to  have  recourse  to  those  measures 
which  thousands  of  either  nation,  may  hereafter  have  cause  to  regret,  and 
which,  I  solemnly  appeal  to  God,  I  have  used  my  utmost  endeavors  to  arrest. 
I  have  the  honor  to  be,  Sir,  with  much  respect, 

Your  most  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 

WILLIAM  CAMPBELL, 
Major  24th  Regiment,  commanding 
Fort  Miami. 
To  Major  General  Wayne,  etc.  etc. 


GENERAL    WAYNE    TO    MAJOR    CAMPBELL. 

Camp,  bank  of  the  Miami  J 
22d  August,  1794.     ) 

Sir  :  —  In  your  letter  of  the  21st  instant,  you  declare,  "  I  have  no  hesitation 
on  my  part  to  say,  that  I  know  of  no  war  existing  between  Great  Britain  and 
America."  I,  on  my  part,  declare  the  same,  and  that  the  only  cause  I  have 
to  entertain  a  contrary  idea,  at  this  time,  is  the  hostile  act  you  are  now  in  the 
commission  of,  i.  e.  by  recently  taking  post  far  within  the  well  known  and 
acknowledged  limits  of  the  United  States,  and  erecting  a  fortification  in  the  heart 
of  the  settlements  of  the  Indian  tribes,  now  at  war  with  the  United  States. 
This,  sir,  appears  to  be  an  act  of  the  highest  aggression,  and  destructive  to  the 
peace  and  interest  of  the  Union.  Hence  it  becomes  my  duty  to  desire,  and 
I  do  hereby  desire  and  demand,  in  the  name  of  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  that  you  immediately  desist  from  any  further  act  of  hostility,  or  ag- 
gression, by  forbearing  to  fortify,  and  by  withdrawing  the  troops,  artillery  and 
stores,  under  your  orders  and  direction,  forthwith;  and  removing  to  the  near- 
est post  occupied  by  his  Britannic  Majesty's  troops  at  the  peace  of  1783;  and 
which  you  will  be  permitted  to  do  unmolested  by  the  troops  under  my  com- 
mand. 

I  am,  with  very  great  respect,  sir, 

Your  most  obedient,  and  very  humble  servant, 
ANTHONY  WAYNE. 
Major  William  Campbell,  etc. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  179 


MAJOR     CAM  I'  HELL     TO     GENERAL     WAYNE. 

Fort  Miami,  22d  August,  1794. 

Sir:  —  I  have  this  moment  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your 
letter,  in  answer  to  which  I  have  only  to  say,  that  being  placed  here  in  the 
command  of  a  British  post,  and  acting  in  a  military  capacity  only,  I  cannot 
enter  into  any  discussion,  either  on  the  right  or  impropriety,  of  my  occupying 
my  present  position.  Those  are  matters  that  I  conceive  will  be  best  left  to 
the  ambassadors  of  our  different  nations.  Having  said  this  much,  permit  me 
to  inform  you  that  I  certainly  will  not  abandon  this  post,  at  the  summons  of 
any  person  whatever,  until  I  receive  orders  for  that  purpose  from  those  I  have 
the  honor  to  serve  under;  or  the  fortune  of  war  should  oblige  me.  I  must 
still  adhere,  sir,  to  the  purport  of  my  letter,  this  morning,  to  desire  that  your 
army,  or  individuals  belonging  to  it,  will  not  approach  within  reach  of  my 
cannon,  without  expecting  the  consequences  attending  it. 

Although  I  have  said,  in  the  former  part  of  my  letter,  that  my  situation  here 
is  totally  military,  yet  let  me  add,  sir,  that  I  am  much  deceived  if  his  Majesty, 
the  King  of  Great  Britain,  had  not  a  post  on  this  river  at  and  prior  to  the 
period  you  mention. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir,  with  the  greatest  respect, 

Your  most  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 

WILLIAM  CAMPBELL, 
Major  24th  regiment,  commanding  at  Fort  Miami. 
To  Major  General  Wayne. 

The  only  notice  taken  of  this  letter,  was  by  immediate  In- 
setting fire  to,  and  destroying  every  thing  of  value  within 
view  of  the  fort,  and  even  under  the  muzzles  of  its  guns. 

The  object  of  the  expedition  to  the  foot  of  the  Rapids, 
having  been  fully  accomplished,  the  army  returned  by  easy 
marches,  to  Grand  Glaise,  where  they  arrived  on  the  27th 
of  August,  laying  waste  on  their  route,  the  villages  and 
corn-fields  of  the  enemy,  for  about  fifty  miles  on  both  sides 
of  the  river.  There  remained,  however,  several  villages 
and  a  quantity  of  corn,  on  the  Au  Glaise  and  the  Miami, 
above  the  junction,  to  be  used  or  destroyed,  as  the  subse- 
quent movements  of  the  army  might  render  expedient.* 

*  The  desire  felt  by  Gen.  Wayne,  to  ascertain  as  accurately  as  possible, 
the  number  of  the  enemy — the  nations  to  which  they  belonged — the  aid  fur- 
nished them  by  the  British — and  the  influence  exerted  by  the  agents  of  that 


180  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

After  the  troops  arrived  at  Defiance,  an  escort  was  sent 
to  Forts  Greenville  and  Recovery  for  supplies,  necessary  for 
the  army;  and  in  the  interim,  Fort  Defiance  and  its  ap- 
pendages were  improved  and  strengthened. 

As  soon  as  the  escort  returned,  the  army  proceeded  to  the 
Miami  villages,  which  had  been  laid  waste  by  General 
Harmar,  in  1790.  At  that  place,  they  constructed  a  strong 
fort,  which  was  called  Fort  Wayne. 

nation,  to  prevent  the  Indians  from  entering  into  a  treaty  with  the  United 
States,  induced  him,  after  his  return  to  Greenville,  to  examine  at  his  leisure, 
the  prisoners  taken  both  before  and  after  the  battle  ;  and  also  such  other  per- 
sons as  were  likely  to  have  knowledge  on  that  subject,  and  on  whose  veracity 
he  could  rely. 

With  that  view,  a  Shawanee  prisoner  was  examined,  taken  by  Captain 
Wells  near  the  foot  of  the  Rapids,  on  the  11th  of  August,  nine  days  before 
the  battle.  He  stated  that  the  first  information  received  by  the  Indians  of  the 
advance  of  the  army  to  the  Au  Glaise,  was  from  a  white  man,  who  came  in,  of 
his  own  accord.  He  stated  also  that  the  Indians,  at  that  time,  were  assembled 
at  Col.  McKee's — that  the  British  were  in  a  fort,  about  one  mile  below  Mc- 
Kee's, on  the  north  side  of  the  river — and  numbered  when  he  was  taken, 
about  two  hundred — that  they  had  four  or  five  great  guns — that  there  were 
about  six  hundred  warriors  at  McKee's,  who  had  abandoned  the  Au  Glaise  on 
the  approach  of  the  army  to  that  place;  of  whom,  about  one  hundred  were 
Shawanees,  three  hundred  Delawares,  one  hundred  Miamies,  and  about  one 
hundred  of  other  tribes — that  in  addition  to  those  who  were  then  at  the  foot  of 
the  Rapids,  three  hundred  Wyandots,  and  two  hundred  and  fifty  Ottawas, 
were  expected. 

Being  asked,  what  number  of  white  men  were  to  join  them,  and  when,  he 
answered  :  that  Captain  Elliott  set  out  for  Detroit  six  days  before — that  he 
was  to  be  back  in  five  days  with  all  the  militia  and  an  additional  number  of 
regular  troops,  which  with  those  already  there,  would  amount  to  one  thou- 
sand men — that,  he  said,  was  the  general  conversation  among  the  Indians. 
He  said  also,  that  Captain  Elliott  promised  them  to  bring  that  number,  and 
that  Colonel  McKee's  son,  and  the  deserter  from  the  American  army,  went 
with  Elliott.  On  being  asked  when,  and  where,  the  Indians  meant  to  fight 
the  American  army,  he  answered,  "at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids;"  adding,  that 
the  white  man  who  came  in,  told  the  Indians  and  Colonel  McKee,  that  the 
army  was  destined  for  that  place. 

On  the  28th  of  August,  Antoine  Lassell,  captured  in  the  action  of  the  20th, 
was  examined.  He  was  a  native  of  Canada,  and  a  volunteer  in  Captain  Cald- 
well's company  of  refugees;  friends  and  allies  of  the  hostile  Indians.  He 
stated,  that  he  had  resided  twenty-nine  years  in  Upper  Canada— twenty-one 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  181 

On  the  14th  of  October,  the  mounted  volunteers  marched 
from  that  place  on  their  way  to  Fort  Washington;  where 
General  Scott  was  instructed  to  muster  and  discharge  them. 
In  a  few  days  after,  the  General,  leaving  a  sufficient  garri- 
son at  Fort  Wayne,  proceeded  with  the  skeleton  of  the 
legion  to  Greenville.  They  reached  that  spacious  encamp- 
ment on  the  2d  of  November,  with  a  view  of  making  it 

of  which  he  had  passed  at  Detroit,  and  on  the  Miami  river;  and  that  he  had 
constantly  traded  with  the  Indians — that  he  resided  at  the  Miami  villages, 
nineteen  years  before  Harmar's  expedition;  during  which  time  he  kept  a  store 
at  that  place,  and  used  to  supply  the  traders  with  goods — that  he  has  since 
chiefly  lived  on  Bean  creek,  at  the  Little  Turtle's  town — that  having  lived,  so 
long,  among  the  Indians,  he  was  perfectly  acquainted  with  the  tribes  and  their 
numbers — that  the  Delawares  had  about  five  hundred  men,  including  those 
who  lived  on  White  river  and  Bean  creek — that  the  Miamies  were  about  two 
hundred  warriors;  part  of  them  on  the  St.  Joseph's,  eight  leagues  from  Au 
Glaise — that  the  men  were  all  in  the  action;  the  women  having  been  left  at 
that  place — that  the  number  of  warriors  belonging  to  that  place,  when  all  to- 
gether, amounted  to  about  forty — that  the  Shawanees  had  about  three  hun- 
dred warriors — the  Ottawas,  on  that  river,  two  hundred  and  fifty — and  the 
Wyandots,  about  three  hundred — that  those  Indians  were,  generally,  in  the 
action  of  the  20th,  excepting  some  hunting  parties — that  a  reinforcement  of 
regular  troops,  and  two  hundred  militia,  arrived  at  Fort  Miami,  a  few  days 
before  the  American  army  appeared — that  the  regular  troops,  within  the  fort, 
amounted  to  two  hundred  and  fifty,  exclusive  of  the  militia — that  about  sev- 
enty of  the  militia,  including  Captain  Caldwell's  corps,  were  in  the  action — 
that  Colonel  McKee,  Captain  Elliott,  and  Simon  Girty,  were  in  the  field;  but 
at  a  respectful  distance,  and  near  the  river — that  Colonel  McKee's  existence 
then  depended  upon  the  exertion  he  could  make,  to  retrieve  the  loss,  and  the 
disgrace  of  the  Indians — that  he  would  use  every  exertion  and  influence  in  his 
power,  to  raise  the  distant  nations,  to  come  forward  immediately  and  assist  in 
the  war.  That,  should  they  not  be  able  to  collect  a  sufficient  force,  to  fight 
the  American  army,  their  intention  was  to  move  on  the  Spanish  side  of  the 
Mississippi,  where  part  of  their  nations  then  lived — that  Blue  Jacket  told  him, 
he  intended  to  move  to  Chicago,  or  the  Illinois — that  the  Indians  had  wished 
for  peace  for  some  time,  but  that  Colonel  McKee  always  dissuaded  them  from 
it,  and  stimulated  them  to  continue  the  war. 

John  Bevin,  a  drummer  in  the  24th  regiment,  commanded  by  Colonel  Eng- 
land, on  his  examination  stated,  that  there  were  four  companies  of  the  24th,  at 
Fort  Miami,  averaging  about  fifty  men,  officers  included — that  there  was  a 
part  of  Governor  Simcoe's  corps  in  the  garrison,  with  about  sixty  Canadians — 
that  the  whole  number  of  men  in  the  garrison,  including  officers,  etc.  exceeded 


182  BURNET'S  NOTES. 

their  winter  quarters,  after  an  arduous  and  fatiguing  tour 
of  ninety-seven  days;  during  which  they  marched  and 
counter-marched  upwards  of  three  hundred  miles  through 
the  heart  of  an  enemy's  country,  cutting  a  wagon  road  the 
whole  way,  besides  erecting  three  fortifications,  to  wit: 
Fort  Adams,  at  the  St.  Mary's;  Fort  Defiance,  at  Au  Glaise; 
and  Fort  Wayne,  at  the  Miami  villages. 


four  hundred — that  the  number  of  Indians,  Canadians,  etc.  engaged  in  the  ac- 
tion, was  at  least  two  thousand,  according  to  the  report  made  by  Colonel  Mc- 
Kee  and  Captain  Elliott,  to  Major  Campbell,  after  the  action — that  there  were 
four  nine-pounders,  two  large  howitzers  and  six  six-pounders  mounted  in  the 
fort,  and  two  swivels — that  the  Indians  were  regularly  supplied  with  provi- 
sions, by  Colonel  McKee,  from  the  British  magazine  in  the  garrison — that  a 
certain  Mr.  Newman,  a  deserter  from  the  American  army,  arrived  at  Fort  Mi- 
ami, about  eight  days  before  the  army  made  its  appearance,  and  gave  informa- 
tion to  Major  Campbell  that  the  object  of  the  Americans  was  to  take  that  fort 
and  garrison — that  General  Wayne  told  the  troops  not  to  be  uneasy  about  pro- 
visions, for  there  was  plenty  in  the  British  garrison — that  Governor  Simcoe 
was  expected  at  that  post  every  hour,  in  consequence  of  an  express  sent  to 
Niagara  after  the  arrival  of  Newman,  the  deserter,  but  had  not  arrived  when 
he  came  away — that  the  distance  from  Fort  Miami  to  Detroit  was  sixty  miles, 
which  was  generally  performed  in  two  days — that  the  militia  of  Detroit  and  its 
vicinity,  amounted  to  near  two  thousand — that  he  has  seen  a  great  number  of 
wounded  Indians  pass  the  fort,  but  did  not  learn  what  number  were  killed — 
that  the  retreating  Indians  appeared  much  dejected,  and  much  altered  from 
what  they  were  in  the  morning,  before  the  action — that  he  knew  one  company 
of  volunteers  commanded  by  Captain  Caldwell,  who  were  all  white  men  arm- 
ed with  British  muskets  and  bayonets,  and  were  in  the  action. 

John  Johnston,  a  deserter  from  General  Wayne's  army,  who  fought  in  the 
action  on  the  20th  against  the  Americans,  spoke  of  it  as  a  complete  defeat  on 
the  part  of  the  Indians,  who  lost  a  great  many  men;  but  be  could  not  tell  the 
number — and  further,  that  after  the  Indians  were  defeated,  they  wanted  to 
take  refuge  in  the  British  fort,  but  were  refused  admittance,  and  were  greatly 
exasperated. 

Other  examinations  were  made  to  ascertain  the  strength  of  the  enemy — the 
interference  of  the  British,  at  and  before  the  battle,  and  the  efforts  they  were 
still  making  to  induce  the  Indians  to  continue  the  war,  and  carry  on  a  winter 
campaign — which  went  strongly  to  corroborate  the  facts  previously  stated. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

Weakness  of  the  American  army.— Intrigues  of  the  English  agents  with  the 
Indians. — Communications  to  Gen.  Wayne  from  Chiefs  of  different  tribes. — 
His  answers. — Proposals  for  a  conference  at  Greenville. — The  Shawanese 
propose  to  remove  west  of  the  Mississippi. 

In  consequence  of  the  continued  fatigue  and  exposure  of 
the  campaign,  during  the  most  unhealthy  season  of  the  year, 
the  sick  list  was  greatly  enlarged,  and  numbers  were  re- 
ported unfit  for  duty.  In  connection  with  this,  the  discharge 
of  the  mounted  volunteers,  and  the  expiration  of  the  period 
of  enlistment  of  many  of  the  Legion,  had  so  reduced  and 
weakened  the  army  as  to  produce  serious  apprehensions 
that  the  fruits  of  the  brilliant  campaign,  then  just  termina- 
ting, were  in  jeopardy,  and  might  be  lost,  should  the  enemy 
ascertain  the  true  condition  of  the  army,  and  resolve  to 
carry  on  an  active  winter  campaign.  That  such  might  be 
the  case,  was  rendered  probable,  by  information  received 
through  a  channel  entirely  to  be  relied  on. 

The  General  was  assured  of  the  fact,  that  on  the  30th  of 
September,  Governor  Simcoe,  Colonel  McKee,  and  Captain 
Brandt,  arrived  at  Fort  Miami,  at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids, 
accompanied  by  a  hundred  Mohawk  and  Massasagoe  Indi- 
ans, and  had  sent  for  the  chiefs  of  the  different  hostile  tribe* 
to  meet  them,  and  hold  a  treaty  at  the  mouth  of  the  Detroit 
river,  eighteen  miles  below  the  town.  He  was  also  advised 
that  Simcoe,  McKee,  and  Brandt,  with  Blue  Jacket,  Buck- 
ongehelas,  Little  Turtle,  Captain  Johnny,  and  several  chiefs 
of  the  Delawares,  Miamies,  Shawanees,  Ottawas,  and  Pot- 
tawattamies,  had  set  out  for  the  place  assigned  for  the 
treaty,  about  the  1st  of  October. 

He  was  also  informed  that  the  Indians  were  abundantly 


184  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

and  regularly  supplied  with  provisions,  from  the  British 
stores  at  Swan  creek,  near  Lake  Erie.  That  previous  to 
the  arrival  of  Governor  Simcoe,  Blue  Jacket,  with  two  of 
the  chiefs  of  the  Ottawas,  and  the  principal  chief  of  the 
Pottawattamies,  had  agreed  to  visit  General  Wayne,  ac- 
companied by  the  person  who  gave  the  information,  who 
was  a  man  of  distinction  and  influence  among  the  Indians, 
and  whose  personal  safety  required  that  his  name  should 
then  be  kept  a  profound  secret;  but  that  Blue  Jacket  in- 
formed him,  after  the  arrival  of  Simcoe,  that  he  would  not 
go  to  Fort  Wayne,  as  he  had  promised  to  do,  till  after  the 
proposed  treaty  at  the  mouth  of  the  Detroit  river — that  his 
wishes  were  still  for  peace — that  he  did  not  know  what 
propositions  Governor  Simcoe  had  to  make;  but  that  he, 
and  all  the  chiefs,  would  go  and  hear;  and  in  the  mean 
time,  they  desired  him  to  enquire  of  General  Wayne,  in 
what  manner  the  chiefs  should  come  to  him,  and  whether 
they  would  be  safe,  in  case  they  should  determine  to  do  so, 
after  the  treaty  with  Simcoe  was  over.  He  further  stated 
that  had  it  not  been  for  the  arrival  of  Simcoe,  McKee,  and 
Brandt,  with  his  Indians,  he  was  confident  the  chiefs  before- 
mentioned,  would  have  accompanied  him  to  head-quarters 
at  the  time  before  stated. 

This  interesting  information  was  immediately  communi- 
cated to  the  War  Department,  by  the  General,  accompa- 
nied with  strong  intimations  of  fear,  that  through  the  influ- 
ence of  the  Governor,  and  his  co-adjutors,  the  negotiations 
then  going  on,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Detroit  river,  with  the 
British  agents,  would  result  in  an  agreement  on  the  part  of 
the  Indians,  to  carry  on  a  winter  campaign  against  the 
American  posts;  and  that  the  proposed  visit  of  Blue  Jacket 
and  his  associate  chiefs,  to  the  American  head-quarters,  to 
treat  for  peace,  would  prove  to  be  delusive.  At  the  same 
time,  the  attention  of  the  Secretary  was  called,  in  the  most 
emphatic  terms,  to  the  reduced  state  of  the  army,  and  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  185 

danger  to  be  apprehended  from  that  cause,  should  the  Brit- 
ish agents  succeed  in  the  efforts  they  were  making  to  induce 
the  Indians  to  renew  the  war. 

He  gave  it  as  his  opinion,  that  the  chiefs  were  playing  a 
deceptive  game,  and  were  determined  to  carry  on  the  war, 
if  they  could  be  convinced  that  the  British  agents  would 
sustain  them,  as  they  were  then  most  solemnly  promising 
to  do.  It  was  true,  that  no  hostile  attempt  had  been  made 
by  any  of  their  parties,  after  the  battle  of  the  20th,  yet  that 
might  be  ascribed  to  the  fact,  that  the  American  detach- 
ments always  moved  superior  to  insult,  rather  than  to  any 
pacific  or  friendly  feeling  entertained  by  the  savages. 

Among  the  causes  of  the  embarrassment  experienced  in 
the  army,  during  the  winter  of  1794-5;  the  unfortunate 
death  of  Colonel  Robert  Elliott,  the  acting  contractor,  was 
mentioned  in  the  official  communications  to  the  War  De- 
partment. That  valuable  officer  was  killed  by  the  Indians 
near  Fort  Hamilton,  on  the  6th  of  October,  1794,  on  his 
way  from  Cincinnati  to  the  out-posts ;  Which  occurrence  so 
increased  the  derangement  of  the  Department  he  belonged 
to,  as  to  render  it  necessary  for  the  General  to  order  the 
Quartermaster  General  to  supply  all  omissions  on  the  part 
of  the  contractors,  at  their  expense,  to  be  settled  at  the 
Treasury,  at  a  future  day. 

While  the  army  were  in  winter  quarters  at  Greenville, 
the  General  was  constantly  receiving  communications  from 
chiefs  of  different  tribes ;  some  of  a  friendly,  others  of  a 
hostile  character.  Among  them  was  one  from  a  chief  at 
Sandusky,  dated  September  17th,  which  stated,  that  after 
the  plan  suggested  by  the  General,  for  a  settlement  of  diffi- 
culties, had  been  fully  considered  by  his  own  tribe,  they 
declined  to  decide  on  it,  till  it  had  been  sent  to  their  con- 
federates at  the  Miami  river,  for  their  information  and  ad- 
vice ;  who  soon  after  returned  the  following  answer : 

"Elder   Brothers:    We  have  received  your   speech,   in 


IgQ  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

which  you  say, '  that  you  are  just  on  the  point  of  sending 
speeches  to  the  Americans.'  We  are  happy  you  thought 
proper  to  let  us  know,  what  you  were  going  to  do.  We 
now  request  you  to  drop  that  measure.  You  must  not  be- 
lieve the  Americans,  for  they  only  wish  to  decoy  us  into  a 
snare,  by  the  fine  speeches  they  so  frequently  send  us.  Let 
us  listen  to  what  our  Father  says  to  us,  as  he  is  now  arrived, 
and  the  Five  Nations  are  coming  to  join  us." 

About  the  same  time,  the  General  received  a  speech  from 
Tarkee,  chief  sachem  at  Sandusky,  in  which  he  entreated  the 
Americans  to  listen  to  the  chiefs  and  warriors  of  the  San- 
dusky tribe,  with  whom  intercourse  had  been  suspended  for 
a  long  time.  He  referred  to  the  council  and  treaty  made 
at  Muskingum,  with  Governor  St.  Clair,  in  1789,  by  which 
all  matters  in  dispute  were  settled,  and  by  which  their 
chains  of  friendship  were  linked  strong  with  ours.  He  ap- 
proved of  that  treaty,  and  said  that  an  evil  spirit  had  been 
set  in  motion,  against  the  good  work  then  finished,  by 
which,  in  a  short  time  after,  all  things  were  thrown  into 
such  confusion,  that  a  rupture  had  taken  place  between  the 
United  States  and  the  Indians,  which  was  then  undecided. 
He  spoke  in  warm  terms  of  friendship,  towards  the  United 
States,  and  in  favor  of  a  speedy  peace. 

On  the  27th  of  September,  a  speech  was  sent  to  General 
Wayne,  from  a  chief  at  Sandusky,  whose  name  is  not  given ; 
in  which  he  requested  the  honor  of  communicating  to  him 
a  few  words,  on  a  subject  of  the  greatest  importance  to 
the  United  States  and  to  the  Indians.  He  said,  that  it  was 
then  more  than  five  years  since  the  commencement  of  the 
war,  and  he  thought  it  was  almost  time  to  rest,  and  enjoy 
the  remainder  of  life  in  the  blessings  of  peace.  It  had 
always  been  the  desire  of  his  heart  to  live  in  peace.  That 
he  could  not  express  the  regret  he  felt  for  his  countrymen, 
who  were  then  in  the  utmost  distress,  and  seemed  to  be 
threatened  with  a  total  extirpation,  from  their  native  soil, 
which  was  the  most  alarming  event  a  human  being  could 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  187 

contemplate.     He  asked,  whom  they  had  to  blame  for  their 
misfortunes;  adding,  that  the  world  knew. 

He  affirmed  that  he  bad  exerted  all  his  ability,  with  the 
chiefs  and  warriors,  when  they  were  assembled  at  that 
place,  to  create  in  them  the  same  ideas  that  he  himself  pos- 
sessed. If  they  went  wrong,  the  charge  of  their  ignorance 
could  not  be  upon  him.  He  complained  of  the  injustice 
that  had  been  done  to  his  people;  and  appealed  to  the 
United  States  for  protection;  requesting  that  a  garrison 
might  be  established  at  Sandusky,  for  the  safety  of  his  peo- 
ple, alledging  that  he  had  always  acted  with  fidelity,  and 
hoped  to  see  the  day,  when  he  should  convince  his  coun- 
trymen how  far  they  had  been  wrong. 

On  the  3rd  of  November,  a  Wyandot  chief  thus  addressed 
the  General: 

"Brother!  I  thank  the  Great  Spirit  that  I  have  now  an 
opportunity  to  see  you.  I  have  come  to  speak  of  peace.  I 
live  at  Sandusky.  We,  Wyandots,  wish  for  peace,  and  are 
determined  to  bury  the  hatchet  and  scalping-knife,  deep  in 
the  ground.  We  pray  you  to  have  pity  on  us,  and  leave 
us  a  small  piece  of  land  to  build  a  town  upon.  The  Great 
Spirit  has  given  land  enough  for  us  all,  in  this  world,  to  live 
and  hunt  upon.  We  have  looked  all  around  us,  for  a  place 
to  move  to,  but  cannot  find  any.  We  want  to  know  your 
mind.  Our  people  will  all  be  assembled  at  Sandusky, 
when  we  return  home. 

"Brother!  I  have  come  to  you  in  behalf  of  my  father, 
and  his  little  town.  We  are  for  peace,  and  intend  to  move 
to  the  head  waters  of  Scioto.  We  are  determined  for 
peace,  and  come  to  tell  you  where  we  live,  so  that  we  may 
not  be  injured  on  account  of  bad  Indians,  should  they  con- 
tinue to  be  hostile." 

These  speeches  were  responded  to  by  General  Wayne, 
in  the  spirit  and  temper  which  circumstances  seemed  to 
require.  On  the  4th  of  November,  he  sent  the  following 
speech  to  Tarkee,  and  to  all  the  chiefs  and  warriors  of  the 


188  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Wyandots,  and  to  all  other  tribes  and  nations  of  Indians 
whom  it  might  concern. 

"Brothers!  I  have  listened  with  attention  to  the  messa- 
ges sent  to  me,  and  am  rejoiced  that  the  Great  Spirit  has 
at  last  opened  your  hearts  and  ears  to  the  voice  of  peace ; 
but  am  sorry  that  the  Evil  Spirit  has  been  busy  in  attempt- 
ing to  prevent  you  from  accomplishing  that  desirable  ob- 
ject; yet  I  hope  and  trust,  that  your  eyes  are  now  opened, 
and  that  you  will  no  longer  suffer  yourselves  to  be  imposed 
on  by  the  bad  advice  of  those  interested  men,  who  have  so 
often  deceived  you,  and  betrayed  you  into  error,  by  fair  and 
plausible,  but  false,  promises  of  assisting  you  to  fight 
against  the  fifteen  fires  of  the  United  States. 

"  I  have  already  told  you,  that  those  people  had  neither 
the  power  nor  the  inclination  to  protect  you — the  truth  of 
which  you  have  fully  experienced. 

"  Brothers  !  You  request  me  to  bring  forth  from  the  bot- 
tom of  my  heart,  my  sentiments  respecting  a  definitive 
treaty  of  peace;  and  upon  what  terms.  The  enclosed 
copies  of  my  speeches,  addressed  to  you  and  all  the  other 
hostile  tribes  of  Indians,  will  best  demonstrate  the  sincerity 
and  wishes  of  my  heart;  and  show  the  pains  I  have  taken 
to  bring  about  a  happy  peace,  and  prevent  a  further  effu- 
sion of  human  blood. 

"Brothers!  I  now  call  upon  you  to  open  your  hearts 
and  ears,  and  exert  every  power  of  attention  to  what  I 
shall  say.  It  is  close  upon  six  years  since  the  sachems 
and  warriors  of  the  Wyandot,  Delaware,  Ottawa,  Chip- 
pewa, Pottawattamie,  and  Sac  nations,  concluded  a  treaty 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum,  with  General  St.  Clair, 
for  removing  all  causes  of  controversy,  and  for  settling 
boundaries  between  the  aforesaid  tribes  of  Indians,  and 
the  United  States  of  America.  That  treaty  appeared  to 
be  founded  upon  principles  of  equity  and  justice;  and  to 
have  been  clearly  and  fairly  understood,  and  satisfactory  to 
all  parties,  at  that  period;  being  the  same  which  you  have 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  199 

recognised  and  recapitulated,  in  your  speech  to  me.  I 
therefore  propose  it  as  a  preliminary,  or  foundation,  upon 
which  a  permanent  and  lasting  peace  shall  be  established, 
between  the  United  States  of  America,  and  your  nation, 
and  the  other  nations  of  Indians.  Should  you  have  any 
well  grounded  objections  to  this  proposition,  come  forward 
and  speak  your  minds  freely,  in  the  manner  mentioned  in 
my  speech,  of  the  12th  of  September  last;  and  rest  assured 
of  a  sincere  welcome,  and  the  most  perfect  security  to 
yourselves  and  friends,  both  in  coming  to  this  place,  and 
returning  home,  when  most  agreeable  to  you." 

On  the  5th  of  November,  the  General  replied  specially  to 
the  letters  of  Tarkee  and  other  Wyandot  chiefs  delivered 
to  him  at  the  Miami  village,  shortly  before ;  in  which  he 
commended  the  part  they  had  taken,  to  bring  about  a 
peace  between  the  United  States  and  the  hostile  tribes; 
and  exhorted  them  to  continue  their  influence  to  accom- 
plish that  good  work;  with  an  assurance  that  they  should 
be  liberally  rewarded  for  their  fidelity  and  trouble.  He 
referred  them  to  his  speech  of  the  4th,  in  which  he  pro- 
posed the  treaty  made  at  Muskingum,  on  the  9th  of  Janu- 
ary, 1789,  as  a  preliminary,  or  foundation  of  a  permanent 
and  lasting  peace. 

He  reminded  them,  that  a  duplicate  of  that  treaty  had 
been  delivered  to  the  Wyandots,  and  was  probably  then 
in  their  possession;  but  as  they  had  attended  the  making 
of  it,  they  were  well  acquainted  with  the  principles  upon 
which  it  was  founded.  He  also  stated  his  belief,  that  his 
speech  to  the  hostile  Indians,  of  the  12th  of  September,  pre- 
ceding, was  in  a  great  part  suppressed,  by  some  of  the  bad 
white  people,  at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids;  in  consequence  of 
which,  he  then  sent  them  a  copy  of  it,  as  also  of  his  speech 
of  the  13th  of  August,  which  he  requested  them  fully  and 
clearly  to  explain  to  their  people.  He  also  invited  them  to 
come  to  Greenville,  immediately,  where  matters  could  be 
better   and  more   fully  understood;    and   he   pledged  his 


190  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

sacred  honor  for  the  safe  return  of  themselves,  and  all  such 
chiefs  and  warriors,  as  might  accompany  them.  In  the 
close  he  expressed  an  ardent  wish  that  the  Great  Spirit 
might  incline  their  hearts  and  minds  to  peace;  and  that  he 
and  they  might  soon  have  a  happy  interview. 

On  the  10th  of  November,  a  confidential  communication 
was  sent  to  General  Wayne,  at  Greenville,  from  the  Wy- 
andots,  by  a  chief  who  came  as  a  flag,  and  whose  personal 
safety  made  it  necessary  to  suppress  his  name.  The  com- 
munication was  in  writing,  and  stated  the  following  facts  : 
— That  his  tribe  were  determined  for  peace, — that  the 
chiefs  were  prevented  by  the  British  agents,  Simcoe,  McKee 
and  Brandt,  from  coming  forward  at  that  time,  as  they 
found  it  expedient,  to  send  one  or  two  of  their  number  to 
the  proposed  treaty  of  the  British,  at  the  mouth  of  the  De- 
troit river,  where  they  had  already  gone.  That  Captain 
Brandt  insisted  on  their  making  one  more  desperate  effort, 
in  which  the  Six  Nations  were  determined  to  join  them. — 
That  he  had  come  with  a  chosen  body  of  his  own  warriors, 
and  would  wipe  the  tears  from  their  eyes. 

He  exhorted  them  to  keep  a  good  heart,  forget  their  late 
disaster,  and  look  forward  to  better  fortune  and  success, 
assuring  them  that  their  father,  the  king,  would  assist  them 
with  his  warriors,  who  were  then  advancing  to  join  them; 
and  that  they  must  come  to  the  treaty  at  Roche  de  Bceuf, 
and  hear  what  their  father,  Governor  Simcoe,  had  to  say  to 
them.  A  message  to  that  effect,  was  sent  by  Patterson,  a 
Mohawk,  and  principal  chief  under  Brandt. 

The  communication  also  stated,  that  three  of  the  princi- 
pal war-chiefs  of  the  Wyandots,  belonging  to  the  same 
town,  who  had  always  been  for  war,  were  killed  in  the 
battle  of  the  20th  of  August,  and  that  the  principal  chiefs 
then  surviving,  were  anxious  for  peace.  It  further  stated, 
that  the  first  intelligence  of  the  advance  of  the  army  to- 
wards Au  Glaize,  was  received  by  the  Indians  from  New- 
man, a  foreigner,  who  deserted  from  St.  Mary's,  when  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  iqj 

troops  were  on  their  march; — that  ho  was  not  captured  by 
the  Indians,  but  went  to  them  voluntarily,  to  give  informa- 
tion of  the  advance  of  the  army ; — and  that  the  Indians 
would  have  been  completely  surprised,  at  Grand  Glaise, 
but  for  the  arrival  and  information  given  them  by  that 
deserter. 

It  was  further  stated,  that  the  Shawanees  appeared  de- 
termined to  remove  to  the  west  side  of  the  Mississippi, 

that  more  than  a  hundred  of  their  warriors  were  then  hunt- 
ing on  the  head  waters  of  the  Miamies  of  the  Ohio,  and  of 
the  Scioto,  who  intended  to  disperse  about  Christmas,  and 
steal  as  many  horses  as  would  be  necessary  to  carry  them 
and  their  families  to  the  Mississippi,  where  several  of  their 
nation,  and  many  of  the  Delawares,  were  already  settled ; 
and  that  those  nations,  it  was  believed,  would  remove, 
rather  than  make  peace.  It  was  also  stated,  that  the  Indi- 
ans, by  that  time,  had  heard  the  proposals  of  the  British, 
and  the  Six  Nations,  with  regard  to  assistance  and  support, 
and  would  determine  for  peace  or  war,  according  to  the 
certainty  or  uncertainty  of  the  promised  support. 


CHAPTER   X. 

State  of  the  American  army  and  of  the  Indians,  in  1794-5. — Indians  begin 
to  collect  at  Greenville. — Preliminary  conferences. 

It  does  not  appear  that  any  military  movement,  worthy 
of  notice,  took  place  during  the  winter  of  1794-5.  The 
General,  however,  was  pressing  his  appeal  on  the  War  De- 
partment, to  reinforce  his  army,  and  was  engaged  in  watch- 
ing the  movements  of  the  enemy,  and  bringing  every  influ- 
ence within  his  power,  to  operate  on  their  minds  in  favor  of 
peace.  He  appealed  to  their  hopes  and  their  fears.  He 
availed  himself  of  the  influence  of  the  chiefs  who  were 
friendly  to  the  United  States,  and  of  such  as  were  indis- 
posed to  continue  the  war,  by  which  he  distracted  their 
councils — kept  their  minds  in  a  vacillating  state — and  pre- 
vented them  from  agreeing  on  any  plan  of  operations,  of  a 
warlike  character.  Whether  he  had  succeeded  in  conceal- 
ing from  them  the  reduced  state  of  his  army,  which  was 
producing  great  fear  at  head-quarters,  was  not  known, 
though  it  was  believed  that  a  knowledge  of  that  fact  would 
operate  as  a  strong  temptation  to  the  savages  to  try  the 
fate  of  another  battle. 

Their  numbers  had  not  been  materially  reduced,  while 
the  strength  of  the  American  army  had  been  very  greatly 
diminished  by  sickness  and  death,  and  by  the  expiration  of 
the  term  of  enlistment  of  many  of  the  Legion,  and  the  dis- 
charge of  the  Kentucky  volunteers.  The  fact,  however,  for- 
tunately was,  let  the  cause  of  it  be  what  it  might,  that  the 
British  officers  and  agents,  with  all  the  influence  they  were 
able  to  exert,  could  not  stimulate  the  Indians  to  recommence 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  193 

hostilities.  They  had  acquired  some  knowledge  of  the 
population  and  strength  of  the  United  States,  and  of  their 
own  utter  inability  to  resist  it.  Some  of  them  were  made 
to  understand,  that  the  white  people  were  so  numerous,  that 
they  could  bring  into  the  field  fifty  warriors  to  their  one ; 
and  that,  sooner  or  later,  they  must  be  destroyed,  if  the  con- 
test were  continued.  Though  this  impression  was  not  gen- 
eral, it  occupied  the  minds  of  a  sufficient  number  of  the 
more  intelligent  and  influential  chiefs  and  warriors,  to  dis- 
appoint the  hopes,  and  frustrate  the  plans  of  Simcoe  and 
his  associates. 

The  Indians  were  evidently  divided  in  opinion,  as  to  the 
course  they  ought  to  pursue.  A  majority  were  disposed  to 
continue  the  war,  but  were  afraid  the  British  agents  would 
not  redeem  their  pledges,  by  which  they  might  be  again 
defeated.  They  remembered  the  solemn  promises  of  co- 
operation, which  had  been  made  to  them  in  times  past. 
They  recollected  that  when  the  fort  was  built  at  the  foot  of 
the  Rapids,  they  were  told  it  was  intended  for  their  protec- 
tion, and  as  a  place  of  refuge,  to  which  they  might  retreat, 
should  they  be  unexpectedly  defeated  by  the  American 
troops.  They  knew,  also,  that  in  violation  of  those  assu- 
rances, the  gates  of  that  strong  fortress  had  been  shut 
against  them,  after  their  defeat  on  the  20th  of  August,  and 
that  neither  chief,  nor  warrior,  was  permitted  to  enter  it. 

Some  of  the  chiefs  were  decidedly  in  favor  of  commen- 
cing a  negotiation  for  peace,  without  further  delay  ;  while 
others,  under  the  influence  of  ambition  and  pride,  had 
partly  determined  to  abandon  the  country,  and  remove 
their  families  to  the  Mississippi,  rather  than  submit  to  the 
humiliation  of  suing  for  peace.  This  diversity  of  feeling 
and  opinion,  produced  in  part  by  the  judicious  measures 
pursued  by  General  Wayne,  accomplished,  in  the  end,  the 
great  object  he  had  in  view  from  the  beginning. 

It  did  not  require  the   spirit  of  prophecy  to  foresee,  that 
if  a  diversity  of  opinion  could  be  produced,  and  kept  up 
13 


194  BURNET'S  NOTES   ON  THE 

among  the  tribes,  and  their  minds  could  be  continued  in  a 
vacillating  state,  no  serious,  immediate  danger  was  to  be 
apprehended.  This  proved  to  be  the  case,  for  although 
they  were  in  a  state  of  great  excitement,  they  remained 
quiet  during  the  winter  and  spring;  and  early  in  June,  be- 
gan to  collect  in  Greenville,  apparently  without  any  previ- 
ous agreement,  or  concert,  and  as  they  severally  arrived, 
gave  notice  that  they  had  come  to  negotiate  a  peace. 

On  the  16th  of  June,  a  considerable  number  of  Dela- 
wares,  Ottawas,  Pottawattamies,  and  Eel-river  Indians, 
having  arrived,  the  General  caused  them  to  be  assembled 
on  that  day,  and  for  the  first  time  met  them  in  general 
council.  After  they  had  received  and  smoked  the  calumet 
of  peace, he  rose  and  thus  addressed  them: 

"  I  take  you  all  by  the  hand,  as  brothers,  assembled  for 
the  good  work  of  peace.  I  thank  the  Great  Spirit,  for  this 
glorious  sun,  who  appears  to  rejoice  at  our  meeting;  and 
also  for  permitting  so  many  of  us  to  assemble  here  this  day, 
being  the  first  of  the  moon,  for  the  purpose  of  holding  a 
treaty.  The  Great  Spirit  has  favored  us  with  a  clear  sky, 
and  a  refreshing  breeze,  for  the  happy  occasion.  I  have 
cleared  this  ground  of  all  brush  and  rubbish,  and  have 
opened  roads  to  the  east,  the  west,  the  north  and  the 
south,  that  all  your  nations  may  come  in  safety,  and  with 
ease,  to  meet  me.  The  ground  on  which  this  council-house 
stands,  is  unstained  with  blood,  and  is  pure  as  the  heart  of 
General  "Washington,  the  great  Chief  of  America,  and  of 
his  great  Council — as  pure  as  my  heart,  which  now  wishes 
for  nothing,  so  much  as  peace  and  brotherly  love.  I  have 
this  day  kindled  the  council-fire  of  the  United  States;  and 
I  now  deliver  to  each  tribe  present,  a  string  of  white  wam- 
pum, to  serve  as  a  record  of  the  friendship,  this  dry  com- 
menced between  us.     [Wampum  delivered.] 

"  The  heavens  are  bright — the  roads  are  open — we  will 
rest  in  peace  and  love,  and  wait  the  arrival  of  our  brothers. 
In  the  interim  we  will  have  a  little  refreshment,  to  wash 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  195 

the  dust  from  our  throats — we  will,  on  this  happy  occasion, 
be  merry,  but  without  passing  the  bounds  of  temperance 
and  sobriety. — We  will  now  cover  up  the  council-fire,  and 
keep  it  alive,  till  the  remainder  of  the  difFerent  tribes  as- 
semble, and  form  a  full  meeting  and  representation." 

Te-ta-boksh-ke,  king  of  the  Delawares,  rose  and  said: 
"  Our  meeting  this  day  affords  me  infinite  pleasure.  I  thank 
the  Great  Spirit,  and  I  thank  you,  for  bestowing  on  us  so 
great  a  happiness.  All  my  people  shall  be  informed  of  the 
commencement  of  our  friendship,  and  they  will  rejoice  in 
it,  and  I  hope  it  will  never  end." — [A  string  of  white  wam- 
pum.] 

The  fire  was  then  raked  up,  and  the  Council  adjourned. 

On  the  next  day,  June  17th,  forty  Pottawattamies  ar- 
rived and  had  audience.  The  New  Corn,  one  of  the  old 
chiefs,  addressed  the  General,  and  said : 

"  I  have  come  here  on  the  good  work  of  peace.  No 
other  motive  could  have  induced  me  to  undertake  so  long  a 
journey  as  I  have  now  performed,  in  my  advanced  age,  and 
infirm  state  of  health.  I  come  from  Lake  Michigan.  I 
hope,  after  our  treaty  is  over,  you  will  exchange  our  old 
medals,  and  supply  us  with  General  Washington:s.  My 
young  men  will  no  longer  adhere  to  the  old  ones — they 
wish  for  the  new.  They  have  thrown  off  the  British,  and 
henceforth,  will  view  the  Americans  as  their  only  true 
friends.  We  come  with  a  good  heart,  and  hope  you  will 
supply  us  with  provisions." 

The  General  replied : — "  I  give  you  all  a  hearty  welcome. 
I  am  particularly  pleased  with  the  appearance  of  so  vener- 
able a  man  as  New  Corn.  You,  young  warriors,  will,  I  am 
persuaded,  pay  the  highest  respect  to  the  counsels  of  this 
aged  chief.  Your  friend,  The  Sun,  a  Pottawattamie  chief, 
will  tell  you,  that  yesterday,  we  kindled  the  council-fire — 
that  the  roads  are  all  clear,  and  that  we  only  wait  the  arri- 
val of  the  other  expected  chiefs,  to  begin  the  good  work. 

"  You  must  be  fatigued;  I  will  not,  therefore,  detain  you 


196  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

at  present.     You  will  be  supplied  with   provisions,  and 
some  drink,  to  refresh  you  and  to  make  your  hearts  glad." 

On  the  21st  of  June,  Buck-on-ge-he-las,  with  a  party  of 
Delawares,  and  Asi-me-the,  with  a  party  of  Pottawatta- 
mies,  arrived,  and  were  received  in  the  council  house. 

Te-ta-boksh-ke,  the  Delaware  king,  on  behalf  of  his  peo- 
ple, addressed  the  General  as  follows : 

"Brother!  listen!  We  are  here  met  by  permission  of 
the  Great  Spirit.  Our  forefathers  used  soft  cloths  to  dry  up 
their  tears, — we  use  this  wampum,  and  hope,  by  its  influ- 
ence, to  do  away  all  past  misfortunes.  We  have  now 
opened  our  eyes  and  our  ears,  and  hope  to  settle  all  diffi- 
culties."— [A  white  string.] 

Asi-me-the,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  spoke  as  follows: 

"  I  have  nothing  to  observe.  Our  grandfathers,  the  Dela- 
wares, have  said  what  is  necessary.  Excuse  my  not  pre- 
senting you  with  wampum.  Why  should  we,  elder  brother, 
be  of  a  different  opinion  from  our  grandfathers,  the  Dela- 
wares ?  The  Great  Spirit  has  been  equally  kind  to  us  in 
this  meeting.  You  see  us  all  here.  You  sent  for  us.  The 
remainder  of  us  are  dead,  or  incapable  of  coming  to  see 
you.  In  compliance  with  your  requisition  for  the  surren- 
der of  prisoners,  and  as  a  proof  of  our  sincere  wishes  for 
peace,  I  now  present  you  two ; — all  who  are  in  our  pos- 
session." 

The  General  rose  and  spoke  thus  : 

"Brothers!  I  take  you  all  by  the  hand,  and  welcome  you 
to  Greenville.  The  great  council-fire  has  already  been 
kindled,  and  the  calumet  of  peace  has  been  smoked,  by  the 
different  nations  who  are  here.  This  old  chief,  Te-ta- 
boksh-ke,  has  witnessed,  and  joined  in  the  solemn  act,  in 
the  presence  of  the  Great  Spirit. 

"We  have  raked  up  the  fire,  until  the  chiefs  generally 
assemble.  Last  night,  I  had  accounts  from  the  Wyandot  s 
of  Sandusky  and  Detroit,  and  all  the  Indians  in  that  quar- 
ter.    This  day  they  rise  upon  their  feet  to  come  and  join 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  197 

in  council  with  us.  The  roads  being  all  clear,  they  will 
arrive  without  difficulty  in  ten  days.  We  will  then  add 
fresh  wood  to  our  fire,  whose  pure  flame  shall  be  seen  from 
the  rising  to  the  setting  sun.  We  will  postpone  entering 
on  business,  until  that  period.  In  the  mean  time,  I  will 
give  you,  my  brothers,  what  will  make  your  hearts  glad.  I 
have  already  given  wampum  to  all  the  tribes  present.  I 
now  present  you  with  a  little  more,  to  evince  that  my  mind 
and  heart  are  always  the  same."     [Wampum.] 

On  the  23d  of  June,  Le  Gris,  the  Little  Turtle,  and  seven- 
teen Miamies  arrived  and  were  presented. 

Le  Gris  merely  observed,  that  he  was  very  happy  to  see 
the  General;  that  he  had  nothing  particular  to  say  at  that 
time.  He  wished  to  encamp,  and  prepare  for  bad  weather, 
and  added,  that  the  Miamies  were  united  with  him  in 
friendly  sentiments  and  wishes  for  peace. 

The  General  said  in  reply:  "I  feel  much  satisfaction  in 
taking  you  all  by  the  hand.  My  pleasure  is  equally  great 
with  yours,  in  this  interview.  The  council  fire  was  kindled 
in  this  house,  on  the  first  day  of  this  moon.  We  covered  it 
up,  and  have  preserved  it  clear,  waiting  for  your  arrival, 
and  the  appearance  of  our  brothers,  the  Wyandots,  Shaw- 
anees,  and  a  part  of  the  Five  Nations,  among  us;  they  are 
now  three  days  on  their  way  hither.  I  will  not  detain  you; 
you  must  require  rest,  and  I  will  order  you  to  be  provided 
with  proper  refreshments.  This  belt  testifies  the  sincerity 
of  the  welcome  with  which  I  receive  you."     [A  belt.] 

On  the  25th  of  June,  the  Indian  chiefs  present  were 
assembled.     The  General  thus  addressed  them : 

"Brothers!  I  take  you  all  by  the  hand.  I  have  invited 
you  to  this  meeting,  to  inform  you  of  some  measures  I 
have  taken,  for  your  convenience.  I  now  give  you  up  my 
exterior  redoubts,  to  accommodate  the  different  nations 
with  council  houses.  My  people  have  all  come  in  from 
them,  and  you  will  allot  them  among  you,  as  you  may 
think  proper.     I  take  this  opportunity  to  make  you   ac- 


198  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

quainted  with  some  customs  we  observe.  On  firing  the 
evening  gun,  all  our  men  repair  to  their  quarters.  I  wish 
your  people  to  act  in  the  same  manner.  I  am  persuaded 
you  will  perceive  the  propriety  of  this  measure.  If  you 
find  any  of  my  foolish  young  men  troubling  my  camp  after 
that  signal,  I  will  thank  you  to  tie  them,  and  send  them  to 
me.     I  wish  to  preserve  good  order  and  harmony. 

"I  will  now  explain  what  yesterday  might  have  had  a 
strange  appearance.  It  is  a  standing  rule,  in  all  our  ar- 
mies, upon  any  alarm,  or  accident,  whatever,  for  our  war- 
riors to  repair,  instantly,  to  their  posts.  I  mention  this  to 
you,  to  prevent,  for  the  future,  any  misapprehensions.  It 
is  by  my  invitation  you  are  here ;  and  I  stand  pledged  for 
your  safety  and  security.  It  is  also  our  practice  to  parade 
our  men  morning  and  evening,  and  call  every  man  by  his 
name.  An  accident  occurred  yesterday,  in  the  explosion 
of  some  of  our  fire-works.  It  will  have  no  other  effect 
than  to  delay  for  a  few  days  the  exhibition  intended  for  the 
4th  of  July,  the  anniversary  of  the  independence  of  Ameri- 
ca. I  have  nothing  more  to  mention  to  you  at  this  time. 
I  call  you  together  merely  to  acquaint  you  with  these 
things,  to  repeat  my  sentiments  of  regard,  and  my  care  for 
youj;  and  to  assure  you,  again,  that  you  may  rest  as  easy, 
and  are  as  safe  here,  as  if  you  were  in  your  own  villages. 
The  council-fire  remains  covered  till  the  arrival  of  the  rest 
of  our  brothers.  General  Washington  and  his  great  coun- 
cil have  sent  you  large  presents ;  the  arrival  of  which  I 
expect  about  the  same  time.  Your  friends  Onas,  the  Qua- 
kers, have  also  sent  you  a  message,  and  some  small  pres- 
ents, as  a  token  of  their  regard  for  you." 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  or  Bad  Bird,  a  Chippeway  chief, 
rose  and  said: 

11  Elder  Brother!  I  thank  you  in  the  name  of  all  the 
Ottawas,  Chippeways  and  Pottawattamies,  for  what  you 
have  this  day  told  us.     It  is  all  very  right  and  good." 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  199 

The   Delawares   signified  their  concurrence  in   opinion, 
with  their  grand-children,  the  Chippeways. 

The  General  then  rose  and  said :  "  I  have  never  yet,  in 
a  public  capacity,  told  a  lie.  You  will  not  be  deceived  by 
placing  the  utmost  confidence  in  what  I  shall  tell  you.  I 
again  repeat,  that  your  own  towns  and  villages  could  not 
afford  you  greater  liberty,  safety,  and  security,  than  you 
will  enjoy,  while  you  choose  to  remain  with  me." 
Meeting  adjourned. 

On  the  26th  of  June,  thirty-four  Chippeways  and  Potta- 
wattamies  arrived.  Mi-chi-mang,  a  Pottawattamie,  said  to 
the  General,  that  as  soon  as  they  heard  his  words,  they 
rose  to  come  and  see  him.  He  said  they  had  no  old  chiefs, 
or  they  would  have  come,  on  this  great  occasion — "they 
are  all  dead."  He  further  observed  that  they  came  in 
expectation  of  being  supplied  with  provisions  to  refresh 
them  after  their  fatigue. 

On  the  30th  of  June,  the  chiefs  were  assembled  at  their 
own  request.  Le  Gris,  chief  of  the  Miamies,  addressed  the 
General  as  follows : 

"Brother!  I  have  come  this  day  only  to  see  you.  The 
other  chiefs  present  have  no  other  object  than  to  partake 
of  the  same  pleasure.  I  hope  every  thing  hitherto  has 
been  satisfactory  to  you.  I  now  express  our  perfect  satis- 
faction. 

"  Our  young  warriors  are  glad  to  meet  and  see  you  and 
your  warriors,  and  I  hope  no  suspicions  have  existed  with 
either.  You  have  told  us  we  should  share  your  provisions, 
whilst  we  staid  with  you;  and  in  consequence,  we  de- 
pend on  receiving  what  you  have  promised.  The  chiefs 
present  are  all  happy  in  the  belief  of  their  perfect  safety ; 
and  I  am  persuaded,  the  other  chiefs,  when  they  arrive, 
will  be  equally  satisfied  with  their  situation.  When  broth- 
ers meet,  they  always  experience  pleasure.  As  it  is  a  cool 
day,  we  hope  you  will  give  us  some  drink.     You  promised 


200  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

to  treat  us  well,  and  we  expect  to  be  treated  as  warriors. 
We  wish  you  to  give  your  brothers  a  glass  of  wine ;  and 
we  should  like  some  mutton  and  pork,  occasionally.  I 
hope  you  are  pleased  with  this  visit." 

New  Corn,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  rose  and  said, 

"I  agree  perfectly  in  sentiment  with  my  brother  Le  Gris. 
I  hope  you  will  comply  with  his  request.  Our  hearts  are 
sorry  and  afflicted,  to  see  the  graves  of  our  brothers,  who 
fell  here  last  winter." 

The  Sun,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  rose  and  said, 

"When  I  came  to  your  house,  you  told  me  I  should  have 
what  I  wanted.  We  get  but  a  small  allowance — we  eat 
it  in  the  morning,  and  are  hungry  at  night.  The  days  are 
long — we  have  nothing  to  do — we  become  uneasy,  and 
wish  for  home." 

The  General  answered  thus  : 

"  I  am  pleased  to  see  you  all  here,  and  happy  to  find  you 
think  yourselves  secure  in  this  camp.  I  wish  you  to  think 
yourselves  perfectly  at  home.  The  chiefs  who  are  on  their 
way,  I  am  persuaded,  will  also  think  themselves  safe  when 
they  arrive.  They  are  now  ten  days  on  their  journey 
towards  us,  and  we  may,  with  certainty,  expect  them.  I 
have  received  a  speech  from  their  nations  to  that  effect. 
Blue  Jacket  comes  by  the  Miami  villages.  The  others 
may  arrive  by  a  different  route. 

"You  say,  that  when  you  came  here,  I  promised  you 
plenty ;  it  is  my  wish  and  intention  that  you  should  have 
enough.  The  Sun  alone  complains  of  scarcity.  I  wish 
you  to  consult  together,  generally,  and  let  me  know  if  you 
really  do  not  now  receive  enough.  Pork,  we  have  none. 
The  few  sheep  we  have,  are  for  the  comfort  of  our  sick, 
and  occasionally  for  our  officers.  Your  sick  shall  most 
cheerfully  share  with  mine,  and  I  will,  with  pleasure,  share 
with  your  chiefs.  New  Corn  has  observed,  that  your  hearts 
were  troubled  for  the  loss  of  your  brothers  who  died  here 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  201 

last  winter.  Grief  is  unavailing,  and  ought  not  to  be 
indulged.  I  will  give  the  chiefs  of  each  nation  present,  a 
sheep  for  their  use,  and  some  drink  for  themselves  and 
their  people,  this  afternoon,  to  make  their  hearts  glad,  and 
to  dry  up  their  tears.  At  present  we  will  have  a  glass  of 
wine  together  —  I  wish  to  see  you  all  happy  and  con- 
tented."    Council  then  adjourned. 

On  the  3d  of  July,  the  General  addressed  the  Chiefs  as 
follows : 

"  Brothers  !  I  take  you  all  by  the  hand,  with  that  strong 
hold  with  which  brothers  ought  to  salute  each  other.  To- 
morrow will  be  the  anniversary  of  the  day  which  gave 
peace,  happiness,  and  independence  to  America — to-mor- 
row all  the  people  of  the  fifteen  fires,  with  shouts  of  joy, 
and  peals  of  artillery,  will  celebrate  the  period  which  gave 
them  freedom.  Nineteen  times  have  the  United  States 
already  hailed  the  return  of  that  auspicious  morn.  To- 
morrow we  shall,  for  the  twentieth  time,  salute  the  return 
of  that  happy  day,  rendered  still  more  dear  by  the  brotherly 
union  between  the  Americans,  and  the  red  people.  To- 
morrow, all  the  people  within  these  lines  will  rejoice. 
You,  my  brothers,  shall  also  rejoice  in  your  respective 
encampments. 

"  I  call  you  together  to  explain  these  matters.  Do  not 
therefore  be  alarmed  at  the  report  of  our  big  guns.  They 
will  do  no  harm — they  will  be  the  harbingers  of  peace 
and  gladness,  and  their  roar  will  ascend  into  the  heavens. 
The  flag  of  the  United  States,  and  the  colors  of  this  Legion 
shall  be  given  to  the  wind,  to  be  fanned  by  its  gentle  breeze, 
in  honor  of  the  birth-day  of  American  freedom.  I  will  now 
show  you  our  colors,  that  you  may  know  them  to-morrow. 
Formerly  they  were  displayed  as  ensigns  of  war  and  battle; 
now  they  will  be  exhibited  as  emblems  of  peace  and  hap- 
piness. This  eagle,  you  see,  holds  his  arrows  close,  while 
he  stretches  forth,  as  a  more  valuable  offering,  the  olive 


202  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

branch  of  peace.  The  Great  Spirit  seems  disposed  to  in- 
cline us  all,  for  the  future,  to  repose  under  its  grateful  shade, 
and  wisely  enjoy  the  blessings  which  attend  it." 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  chief  of  the  Chippeways,  rose  and 
addressed  the  General  thus  : 

"  Elder  Brother!  I  have  heard  your  words,  and  have  re- 
ceived great  pleasure  from  them.  I  never  make  long 
speeches;  what  I  have  to  say,  I  say  in  a  few  words.  Look 
at  your  warriors  around  you,  and  view  ours.  Does  it  not 
give  you  pleasure  to  see  us  all  met  here  in  brotherly  love? 

"Elder  Brother!  You  may  believe  what  I  say,  and  what 
I  am  going  to  say.  As  we  are  here  on  good  business,  our 
hearts  must  dictate  what  our  tongues  express.  The  Great 
Spirit  knows  when  we  speak  truth,  and  punishes  falsehood. 
As  you  have  told  us,  we  are  to  rejoice:  I  have  a  favor  to 
ask  of  you,  compliance  with  which  will  prepare  our  hearts 
for  the  occasion.  We  would  wish  to  rescue  from  death,  two 
of  your  young  warriors,  whom  we  brought  in  to  you,  who,  as 
we  hear,  are  to  die.  I  entreat  you  in  the  name  of  all  pres- 
ent, to  spare  their  lives,  and  pray  you  to  indulge  us  in  this 
request."     [A  white  and  blue  string.] 

Te-ta-boksh-ke,  king  of  the  Delawares,  thus  spoke  : 

"  Elder  Brother!  I  thank  you  for  having  kindly  explained 
to  us  what  will  take  place  to-morrow.  Our  young  men 
shall  all  be  informed  of  it.  We  thank  you  for  your  atten- 
tion to  us.  We  will  sincerely  rejoice  on  the  happy  occa- 
sion." 

The  General  replied : 

"  Brothers!  I  have  heard  your  words,  and  will  answer 
you  presently.  As  I  never  speak  without  deliberation,  you 
may  depend  on  what  I  say. 

"Brothers!  I  have  considered  your  request,  respecthg  the 
two  warriors  condemned  to  die.  I  will  now  answer  you. 
The  two  men  condemned  to  death,  are  not  those  whom  you 
brought  to  me ;  but  two  very  bad  men  from  another  quarter. 
I  desired  this  good  man,"  (Dr.  Jones,  the  Chaplain,)  "to  pre- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  203 

pare  the  minds  of  these  men  for  the  awful  change  they 
are  about  to  experience.  We  put  no  man  to  death,  with- 
out giving  him  time  to  repent,  and  to  whiten  his  heart. 
The  lives  of  the  two  men  whom  you  brought  in,  although 
very  culpable,  are  now  granted  to  your  humane  entreaties. 
That  you  may  all  remember  that  the  Americans  rejoice  to- 
morrow, and  on  every  succeeding  anniversary  of  it,  I  pre- 
sent each  nation  with  a  string  of  white  wampum.  We 
will  now  retire  and  hope  to-morrow's  dawn  may  be 
propitious."     [Wampum.] 

On  the  4th  of  July,  A-goosh-a-way,  and  twenty-three 
Ottawas,  from  the  vicinity  of  Detroit,  arrived  and  had 
audience.     The   General  addressed  them : 

"Brothers!  I  take  you  all  by  the  hand.  I  am  happy  to 
see  you.  You  must  be  hungry  and  dry.  I  will  order  you 
refreshments  to  make  your  hearts  glad.  The  hearts  of 
your  brothers  are  also  made  glad  this  day.  I  will  no 
longer  detain  you  from  taking  that  repose  of  which  you 
seem  to  stand  in  so  much  need.  I  deliver  this  string  as  a 
proof  of  my  happiness  in  seeing  you."     [A  white  string.] 

A-goosh-a-way  spoke  as  follows : 

"Brother!  Those  nations  who  are  now  represented  at 
this  meeting,  are  probably  all  you  may  reasonably  expect. 
As  for  the  Shawanees  and  Wyandots  of  Detroit,  I  do  not 
believe  they  will  come.  I  frequently  told  them  they  ought 
to  advance  without  hesitation;  but  they  still  continue 
irresolute,  and  hover  around  their  enemies,  the  British.  I 
cannot  discover  the  motives  which  actuate  the  Wyandots. 
The  Six  Nations  sent  two  letters,  prevailing  on  me  to  await 
their  junction ;  but  finding  they  delayed,  and  suspecting 
their  sincerity,  I  came  away  without  waiting  long  for 
them." 

July  9th.  In  council — Present,  the  chiefs  of  the  Dela- 
wares,  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  Pottawattamies,  Miami  and 
Wabash  tribes. 

The  General  rose  and  addressed  them  as  follows : 


204  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Younger  Brothers  I  I  take  you  all  by  the  hand,  and  wel- 
come you  to  this  council-fire.  Viewing  the  number  of  na- 
tions who  last  winter  signed  the  preliminary  articles,  I  per- 
ceive all  are  present,  except  the  Wyandots  of  Sandusky, 
and  the  Shawanees.  It  is  now  twenty-five  days  since  the 
council-fire  was  kindled  at  this  place.  It  has  continued  to 
burn  bright;  and  it  has  happily  dissipated  the  clouds,  which 
have  hung  over  the  people  of  Sandusky.  They  now  see 
that  the  sky  is  clear  and  serene:  that  the  roads  are  open, 
and  free  of  thorns.  Four  runners  arrived  from  them  last 
evening,  to  announce  to  me,  the  near  approach  of  all  the 
chiefs  of  the  Wyandots,  and  others  of  Sandusky.  The  in- 
telligence which  these  messengers  have  brought  me,  is  this: 
that  the  dark  cloud  which  enveloped  the  Shawanees,  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  British  posts,  (for  that,  my  brothers,  is 
a  very  cloudy  place,)  has  also  been  dispelled;  that  they 
have,  at  length,  awoke  from  their  intoxicated  slumber,  and 
are  now  on  their  feet,  coming  to  this  place.  They,  and  the 
Wyandots,  etc.  of  Sandusky,  may  be  expected  to  arrive 
here,  in  the  course  of  three  days.  The  question  then  is : 
shall  we  now  name  the  day,  on  which  to  begin  the  great  and 
good  work,  or  shall  we  wait  the  arrival  of  those  chiefs,  and 
have  their  united  voice  on  the  subject.  This  is  all  I  shall 
propose  at  present,  until  I  hear  your  respective  opinions." 

The  Little  Turtle  made  some  remarks  to  the  other  chiefs, 
on  the  General's  speech,  and  gave  them  some  reasons  why 
the  fixing  of  the  day  should  be  postponed. 

A-goosh-a-way,  an  Ottawa  chief,  rose  and  said : 

"Elder  Brother  I  I  am  much  obliged  to  you  for  requiring 
our  opinions  on  this  matter.  'Tis  true,  as  the  Little  Turtle 
has  observed  to  us,  that  we  have  been  here  a  long  time 
waiting;  but  it  will  be  best  to  remain  contented  a  lew  ('ays 
longer,  that  we  may  begin  the  good  work  all  together.  I 
now  present  you  our  pipe,  and  hope  that  you  and  your 
warriors  will  smoke  it. 

11  Elder  Brother!  You  see  that  all  your  chiefs,  as  well  as 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  205 

ours,  have  smoked  out  of  this  calumet  of  peace ;  and  the 
Great  Spirit  is  well  pleased  to  see  it.  The  calumet  does 
not  now  speak ;  it  remains  silent,  until  the  arrival  of  our 
brothers,  who  are  on  their  way." 

The  General  rose  and  said : 

"Younger  Brothers!  Twenty-five  days  ago.  the  calumet 
of  peace,  of  the  fifteen  fires,  of  the  United  States,  was 
smoked  in  this  house.  It  did  not  then  speak;  and  it  yet 
remains  silent.  I  am  pleased  to  hear  you  all  concur  in 
opinion,  with  the  Little  Turtle,  that  we  should  wait  the  ar- 
rival of  our  brothers,  the  Wyandots  and  Shawanees.  I 
therefore  propose  that  we  shall  meet  again  at  this  place  on 
Monday  next." 

[A  white  string  to  each  nation  present.]  Council  ad- 
journed to  Monday  the  13th. 

On  Monday,  July  13th,  at  the  request  of  the  Wyandot 
chiefs,  who  arrived  on  the  12th,  and  others,  the  meeting 
proposed  for  that  day,  was  postponed  until  Wednesday  the 
15th,  some  necessary  regulations  among  them  not  having 
been  decided  on. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

Commencement  of  the  negotiations  in  full  council. — Introductory  speech  of 
General  Wayne. — Speeches  of  the  Chiefs  of  the  different  tribes. — Progress 
of  the  negotiations. 

On  Wednesday,  July  15th,  the  Council  assembled  agree- 
ably to  adjournment.  Present,  the  chiefs  of  the  Wyandots, 
Delawares,  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  Pottawattamies,  Miam- 
ies,  and  Wabash  tribes.  The  council  being  opened,  and 
the  council-fire  uncovered,  interpreters  were  sworn  in; 
after  which  the  General  addressed  the  Indians  thus : 

"  Younger  Brothers!  These  interpreters  whom  you  have 
now  seen  sworn,  have  called  the  Great  Spirit  to  witness 
that  they  will  faithfully  interpret  all  the  speeches  made  by 
me  to  you,  and  by  you  to  me ;  and  the  Great  Spirit  will 
punish  them  severely  hereafter,  if  they  do  not  religiously 
fulfil  their  sacred  promise. 

"  This  is  the  calumet  of  peace  of  the  fifteen  fires  of  the 
United  States  of  America.  I  shall  first  present  it  to  The 
Soldier  (Wabash  tribe)  who  first  took  us  by  the  hand,  as  I  do 
not  know  yet  which  nation  among  you  is  in  future  to  have 
the  precedence.  The  next  were  the  Wyandots,  who  came 
forward  last  fall,  early;  the  next  were  the  Ottawas,  Chip- 
peways, Pottawattamies,  and  Sauckeys ;  and  the  next  were 
the  Delawares. 

"  Younger  Brothers!  All  the  chiefs  and  warriors  of  the 
different  nations  present!  I  now  take  you  all  by  the  hand. 
Tt  was  my  wish  to  have  waited  for  the  arrival  of  the  Shaw- 
anees,  Wyandots  of  Detroit,  and  some  Chippeways,  who,  I 
learn,  are  on  their  way;  but  as  it  is  the  desire  of  the  chiefi 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  207 

present,  to  commence  the  business  generally,  I  will  now 
show  them  by  what  authority  I  hold  this  treaty. 

"Treaties  made  by  all  nations  on  this  earth,  ought  to  be 
held  sacred  and  binding,  between  the  contracting  parties; 
hence,  it  is  the  practice,  to  commission  certain  persons  with 
powers  to  make  and  conclude  stipulated  articles  of  treaties 
accordingly.      These   books   contain   treaties   which   have 
been  held  with  all  the  Indian  nations,  in  North   America, 
and  show  what  has  been  said  and  done  at  each,  without 
the  smallest  alteration.     In  the  first  place,  this  is  a  com- 
mission, appointing  me  Commander-in-chief  of  the  Ameri- 
can Legion,  presented  to  me  by  General  Washington  and 
the  fifteen  fires,  three  years  since.     On  the  4th  day  of  April, 
1794,  I  received  a  commission  from  the  same  authority,  for 
settling  a  peace  with  all  the  tribes  of  Indians  north-west  of 
the  Ohio."     (Here  the  General  read   the  renewal   of  his 
powers  as  Commissioner,  to  treat  with  the  Indians.) 

"  Having  thus  produced  my  authority,  given  me  by  Gene- 
ral Washington,  and  the  fifteen  fires,  I  will  now  proceed 
to  review  the  preliminary  articles,  which  we  mutually  en- 
tered into  and  exchanged,  during  the  past  winter. 

"  Younger  Brothers !  Open  your  ears,  and  listen  to   the 
question  asked  me  by  the  Wyandots  of  Sandusky,  on  the 
26th  of  September  last.     This  was  the  voice  of  the  Wyan- 
dots and  other  tribes  of  Sandusky.     'Brother!  Bring  forth 
from  the  bottom  of  your  heart  your  sentiments  respecting 
making  a  definitive  treaty  of  peace,  and  upon  what  terms. 
We  shall  deliver  our  prayers  daily  to  the  Great  Spirit  above, 
our  Maker,  that  he  will  open  your  heart  and  sentiments  to 
us.'     This  was  a  strong  and  serious  question,  upon  which 
the  happiness  of  the  United  States  and  the  Indian  nations 
mutually  depended.     The  answer  made  to   that   question 
required  some  explanations  which  are  tedious,  and  do  not 
seem  at  present  necessary  to  be  repeated;  but  I  will  read 
that  part  which  explains  the  principles  upon  which  a  peace 
could  take  place. 


208  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"' Brother!  You  desire  me  to  bring  forth  from  the  bottom 
of  my  heart,  my  sentiments  respecting  a  peace,  and  upon 
what  terms  it  could  be  obtained. 

"' Brother!  I  now  call  upon  you  to  exert  your  utmost 
powers  of  attention,  and  listen  to  what  I  shall  say  to  you. 
It  is  now  near  six  years,  since  the  chiefs  of  the  Wyandots, 
Delawares,  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  Pottawattamies  and 
Sac  nations,  concluded  a  treaty  at  the  mouth  of  the  Mus- 
kingum, with  Governor  St.  Clair,  for  removing  all  causes 
of  controversy,  and  settling  the  boundaries  between  them 
and  the  United  States.  That  treaty  appeared  to  be  founded 
upon  principles  of  equity  and  justice,  and  to  be  perfectly 
satisfactory  to  all  parties  at  that  time.  I  therefore  propose 
that  treaty  as  a  foundation  for  a  lasting  treaty  of  peace, 
between  the  United  States  and  all  your  nations  of  Indians. 
Should  you  have  any  well  grounded  objections  to  these 
principles  and  to  this  proposition,  come  forward  and  speak 
your  minds  freely;  and  rest  assured  of  a  sincere  welcome, 
and  safe  conduct,  in  coming  hither  and  returning  to  your 
homes,  from  your  friend  and  brother,  Anthony  Wayne.' 

"  This  was  my  answer  to  the  Wyandots.  They  are  here 
present,  and  can  testify  to  the  truth  of  it.  In  consequence 
of  this  answer,  the  Ottawas,  Chippewrays,  Pottawattamies, 
Sauckeys,  Miamies,  Delawares,  and  Shawanees,  came  for- 
ward and  signed  these  preliminary  articles,  of  which  you 
have  all,  respectively,  copies.  Having  now  shown  you 
that  I  stand  here  in  the  place  of  General  Washington,  and 
represent  the  fifteen  fires  of  America,  and  having  shown 
the  manner  in  which  this  happy  meeting  came  about,  by  an 
application,  first  from  the  Wyandots,  whose  good  example 
was  followed  by  the  other  nations,  I  shall  forbear  to  say 
more,  as  the  day  is  far  spent,  but  to  request  you  to  consider 
what  I  have  said. 

" Brothers!  I  wish  you  all  clearly  to  understand  that  we 
have  progressed  so  far  in  the  good  work,  as  to  explain 
these  preliminary  steps.     I  would  advise  you  to   appropri- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  209 

ate  two  or  three  days,  to  revolve,  coolly  and  attentively, 
these  matters,  and  those  which  will  naturally  follow  them. 
I  take  you  all  by  the  hand.  We  will  now  rake  up  the 
council-fire,  and  as  we  have  talked  a  long  time,  we  must 
be  dry,  and  have  a  little  drink."     Council  adjourned. 

Saturday,  July  18th.  In  council.  Present  as  before. 
The  Little  Turtle,  a  Miami  chief,  addressed  the  General  as 
follows : 

"  Brother  !  We  have  heard  and  considered  what  you  have 
said  to  us.  You  have  shown,  and  we  have  seen,  your 
powers  to  treat  with  us.  I  came  here  for  the  purpose  of 
hearing  you.  I  suppose  it  to  be  your  wish  that  peace 
should  take  place  throughout  the  world.  When  we  hear 
you  say  so,  we  will  be  prepared  to  answer  you.  You  have 
told  me  that  the  present  treaty  should  be  founded  upon  that 
of  Muskingum.  I  beg  leave  to  observe  to  you,  that  that 
treaty  was  effected,  altogether,  by  the  Six  Nations,  who 
seduced  some  of  our  young  men  to  attend  it,  together  with 
a  few  of  the  Chippeways,  Wyandots,  Ottawas,  Delawares, 
and  Pottawattamies.  I  beg  leave  to  tell  you,  that  I  am 
entirely  ignorant  of  what  was  done  at  that  treaty.  I  hope 
those  who  held  it,  may  give  you  their  opinions,  whether  or 
not,  it  was  agreeable  to  them." 

The  Sun,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  rose  and  said  : 

"  Brother !  The  Master  of  Life  had  pity  on  me  when  he 
permitted  me  to  come  and  take  you  first  by  the  hand. 
With  the  same  hand  and  heart  I  then  possessed,  I  now  sa- 
lute you.  When  I  gave  you  my  hand,  you  said  '  I  thank 
you,  and  am  glad  to  take  your  hand,  Pottawattamie,'  and 
you  thanked  the  other  Indians  also,  and  told  them  you  had 
opened  a  road  for  them  to  come  and  see  you.  When  I  got 
this  belt  from  the  Americans,  they  told  me  the  roads  were 
open  and  clear,  and  that  no  obstruction  should  prevent  our 
coming  to  see  you.  I  was  happy  when  you  gave  me  the 
road"  [a  belt,]  "  and  so  are  we  all,  for  we  have  all  traveled 
it.  I  hope  it  will  remain  free  of  bushes  and  thorns,  as  long 
14 


210  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

as  Americans  and  Indians  live.  You  yourself,  have  told 
me  it  should  be  so,  and  that  this  (meaning  the  olive  branch, 
held  by  the  eagle)  was  a  leaf  of  that  great  tree,  under 
whose  shade  we,  and  all  our  posterity,  should  repose  in 
safety  and  happiness. 

"  Elder  Brother !  We  have  followed  the  road  you  gave 
us,  in  safety.  I  now  present  it  to  your  view,  as  your  gift," 
[presenting  a  road-belt,  with  the  eagle  of  the  United  States 
attached.] 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish  rose  and  said, 

"Brothers  of  the  different  nations  present !  Listen  to  what 
our  elder  brother  tells  us,  with  attention.  I  am  satisfied  it 
is  the  truth. — Listen  to  me  also,  elder  brother !  Last  win- 
ter I  heard  your  words,  when  you  stretched  your  hands  to 
us,  and  asked  us  to  come  and  see  you.  I  never  heard  be- 
fore, what  The  Sun  has  been  observing.  When  I  heard  what 
you  said  last  winter,  I  took  you  by  the  hand,  and  now, 
when  I  returned,  I  found  your  gates  open  to  receive  me, 
and  that  you  told  me  truth.  I  was  then  deputed  by  the 
chiefs  of  my  nation,  to  hear  your  words,  and  am  happy  that 
they  are  now  convinced  of  the  truth  of  them.  You  now 
also  find  the  truth  of  my  words :  that  I  then  came  only  to 
carry  back  your  words,  and  the  other  chiefs  would  come  to 
see  you.  You  now  see  them  present,  the  representatives 
of  their  nations.  Here  are  the  chiefs  of  the  Ottawas, 
Chippeways,  and  Pottawattamies.  We  three  are  faithful 
allies,  and  one  of  us  speaks  for  the  whole,  when  in  council. 
The  words  you  spoke  last  winter,  are  fresh  on  my  memory. 
I  know  nothing  of  the  treaty  in  question,  which  took  place 
at  Muskingum.  The  people  who  made  it  are  present,  and 
will  be  able  to  speak  to  it.  My  remote  situation,  on  Lake 
Michigan,  prevented  me  from  being  acquainted  wita  it." 

Tar-kee,  or  Crane,  chief  of  the  Wyandotfl,  rose  and  said : 

11  Brothers  of  all  nations  present,  listen  I  Elder  brother!  I 
don't  think  it  proper  to  select  any  particular  nation,  to 
speak  for  the  whole.     You  have  kindled  the  council-lire. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  211 

I  wish  you  to  determine  what  nation  shall  speak,  and  ap- 
point a  day  when  we  shall  all  be  collected,  and  when  those 
who  are  on  their  way  shall  have  joined  us." 

The  General  rose  and  said  : 

"Brothers!  I  have  paid  very  great  attention  to  what  has 
been  observed  by  the  Miamies,  Pottawattamies,  Chippe- 
ways,  and  Wyandots,  and  the  day  after  to-morrow,  I  will 
endeavor  to  explain  fully  the  treaty  of  Muskingum,  of 
which  so  many  plead  ignorance.  I  will  bring  to  the  recol- 
lection of  the  Wyandots,  Delawares,  Ottawas,  Chippeways, 
Pottawattamies  and  Sac  nations,  what  they  did  at  that 
treaty,  and  show  them  anew,  their  names  who  witness  it. 
There  are  some  Chippeways  approaching,  who  perhaps 
were  at  the  treaty;  and  when  I  look  around  me,  I  imagine 
I  see  some  faces  who  were  present  at  it.  This  road,  (allu- 
ding to  The  Sun's  road  belt)  is  the  true  road.  I  have  a 
branch  similar  to  this,  at  my  breast :  I  know  them  to  be  of 
the  same  tree,  and  of  equal  value.  This  is  all  I  shall  say 
at  present.  I  thank  the  Great  Spirit  for  assembling  so 
many  of  us  together  on  this  good  work;  and  I  hope  we 
shall  have  all  things  perfectly  understood  and  explained, 
to  our  mutual  satisfaction,  before  we  part." 

Council  adjourned  to  meet  on  the  20th. 

In  the  evening  of  the  19th,  Blue  Jacket,  and  thirteen 
Shawanees,  and  Masass,  with  twenty  Chippeways,  arrived 
and  were  received  in  the  council  house.  Masass  spoke  as 
follows : 

"I  am  very  happy  to  be  here  this  day.  I  was  at  the 
treaty  of  Muskingum,  and  have  it  now  in  my  hand  to  show 
it  you.  Nothing  but  my  having  it  in  my  possession  could 
have  brought  me  here  at  this  time,  for  I  came  voluntarily, 
and  unasked.  We  should  have  come  in  great  numbers 
but  for  Brandt's  endeavors  to  prevent  us.  The  Wyandots 
and  Six  Nations  are  counseling.  I  do  not  know  what  may 
be  the  result  of  their  conference.     I  am  happy  to  find  so 


212  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

many  of  my  brothers  with  you.  I  hope  for  the  future  they 
will  walk  in  the  right  way,  and  be  sincere  in  their  engage- 
ments. I  again  repeat  my  knowledge  of  the  treaty  of 
Muskingum.  As  far  as  I  understand  it,  I  have  been  faithful 
to  it.  I  have  brought  these  Frenchmen  with  me  that  I 
may  be  well  acquainted  with  every  thing  that  shall  take 
place.  This  is  all  I  have  to  say  at  present.  Having 
traveled  far  I  am  fatigued  and  require  refreshment."  [A 
white  string.] 

Blue  Jacket  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Brother!  When  I  came  here  last  winter  I  did  not  mean 
to  deceive  you;  what  I  promised  you  I  did  intend  to  per- 
form. My  wish  to  conclude  a  firm  peace  with  you  being 
sincere,  my  uneasiness  has  been  great,  that  my  people 
have  not  come  forward  so  soon  as  you  would  wish  or  might 
expect ;  but  you  must  not  be  discouraged  by  these  unfavor- 
able appearances.  Some  of  our  chiefs  and  warriors  are 
here;  more  will  arrive  in  a  few  days.  You  must  not  how- 
ever expect  to  see  a  great  number,  yet  notwithstanding, 
our  nation  will  be  well  represented.  Our  hearts  are  open, 
and  void  of  deceit." 

The  General  spoke  as  follows : 

"Brother,  the  Chippeway!  I  am  happy  to  see  you  and 
your  people.  The  open  and  generous  manner  in  which 
you  have  acknowledged  being  present  at,  and  acquainted 
with,  the  treaty  of  Muskingum,  displays  an  honest,  open, 
and  manly  heart.  I  therefore  take  you  by  the  hand,  with 
the  warmth  and  friendship  of  a  brother.  I  know  you  have 
come  a  great  way  —  provision  shall  be  furnished  you  and 
your  people,  to  appease  your  hunger;  and  you  shall  have 
some  liquor  also,  to  quench  your  thirst,  and  to  enable  you 
to  rejoice  with  your  friends  and  brothers  present. 

"Brother,  the  Shawancc!  I  am  well  convinced  of  the 
integrity  of  your  heart,  and  that  your  exertions  have  not 
been  wanting  to  bring  hither  a  full  representation  of  your 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  213 

nation,  at  an  early  hour.     I  therefore  bid  you,  and  my 
friends  with  you,  a  sincere  welcome." 

On  the  19th  of  July,  Blue  Jacket  had  a  private  con- 
ference with  the  General,  in  which  he  spoke  as  fol- 
lows : 

"Brother  and  Ally!  It  is  a  long  time  since  I  left  you. 
I  believe  it  is  about  five  months.  Many  things  have  oc- 
curred since  that  time,  which  I  will  inform  you  of,  as  you 
may  be  unacquainted  with  them.  I  visited  the  British,  and 
was  kindly  received  at  their  garrison,  on  the  Miami.  I 
was  asked  for  news ;  I  had  none  for  them,  except  that  of 
my  kind  reception  from  you.  Mr.  Magdalen  wrote  from 
thence  to  Detroit,  that  he  had  taken  off  my  blue  coat,  which 
I  had  received  from  the  Americans,  and  broke  my  gun, 
which  he  also  falsely  said,  was  presented  to  me  by  General 
Wayne.  I  did  not  rest  until  I  exposed  this  man,  and  refu- 
ted his  assertions.  I  informed  all  the  Indians  of  my  full 
persuasion  of  the  truth,  of  the  kind  and  benevolent  inten- 
tion, you  expressed  to  me,  and  that  they,  in  due  time, 
would  be  convinced  of  the  goodness  of  your  motives.  Mr. 
McKee  invited  me  to  his  house,  and  told  me  he  was  very 
sorry  to  find  I  had  acted  with  such  little  regard  for  my 
people  —  that  he  ascribed  my  strange  conduct  to  the  insti- 
gations of  some  evil  spirit,  who  had  led  me  astray  from  the 
plain  good  road,  and  put  me  in  the  path  which  led  to  the 
Americans.  '  The  commission  you  received  from  Johnston,' 
said  he,  'was  not  given  you  to  carry  to  the  Americans.  I 
am  grieved  to  find  that  you  have  taken  it  to  them.  It  was 
with  much  regret  I  learned  that  you  had  deserted  your 
friends,  who  always  caressed  you,  and  treated  you  as  a 
great  man.  You  have  deranged,  by  your  imprudent  con- 
duct, all  our  plans  for  protecting  the  Indians  and  keeping 
them  with  us.  They  have  always  looked  up  to  you  for 
advice  and  direction  in  war,  and  you  have  now  broke  the 
strong  ties  which  held  them  all  together,  under  your  and 
our  direction.     You  must  now  be  viewed  as  the  enemy  of 


214  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

your  people,  and  the  other  Indians,  whom  you  are  seducing 
into  the  snares,  the  Americans  have  formed  for  their  ruin ; 
and  the  massacre  and  destruction  of  these  people,  by  the 
Americans,  must  be  laid  to  your  charge.' 

"Brother!  I  am  happy,  that  notwithstanding  all  the  diffi- 
culties and  obstructions  I  had  to  encounter,  from  my  rela- 
tions and  others,  at  Detroit,  I  have  succeeded  so  far  in 
bringing  my  people  to  you  at  this  time.  I  expect  intelli- 
gence this  day,  of  the  approach  of  more  of  them.  I  have 
briefly  acquainted  you  with  these  things.  I  repeat  my  as- 
surances of  the  sincerity  of  my  sentiments  and  resolution, 
to  be  for  the  future,  a  steady  friend  to  the  United  States." 

Monday,  July  20th — In  council — Present  as  before,  with 
the  addition  of  the  Shawanees  and  Chippeways,  who  arri- 
ved on  the  evening  of  the  18th.  The  General  rose  and 
spoke  as  follows : 

"Brothers  of  all  the  nations  present!  I  take  you  by  the  hand. 
When  we  were  last  in  council,  two  days  since,  the  [Little 
Turtle  observed, — '  We  came  with  an  intention  to  hear  you 
— we  expect  your  wish  is  for  peace  with  all  the  world — we 
would  be  glad  to  hear  your  sentiments  upon  the  subject.' 
I  did  hope  and  expect,  that  every  man  among  you,  would 
be  perfectly  acquainted  with  my  sentiments  on  this  subject, 
as  I  have  for  a  long  time  past,  taken  pains  to  diffuse  them 
throughout  your  nations.  I  will  read  you  a  message,  which 
I  sent  amongst  you,  by  Mr.  Miller,  now  present,  on  the  13th 
of  August  last,  and  which  I  am  persuaded,  from  the  best 
authority,  had  been  fully  explained  to,  and  perfectly  under- 
stood by  your  chiefs  and  warriors,  [Here  the  General  read 
his  message  of  13th  August,  1794.] 

"I  likewise  told  you,  that  the  ears  and  the  heart  of  the 
President,  General  Washington,  were  ever  open  to  the 
voice  of  peace,  and  that  he  had  instructed  me,  his  principal 
warrior,  to  listen  to  that  welcome  voice,  from  whatever 
quarter  it  might  come,  provided  it  came  from  proper  au- 
thority and  from  the  heart. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  215 

"  Six  moons  since,  The  Crane  (Wyandots)  and  a  number 
of  Chippeways,  Ottawas  and  Sacs,  came  here  in  conse- 
quence of  this  invitation.  They  were  also  accompanied  by 
the  Miamies.  I  received  them  with  great  pleasure,  and 
informed  them  that  I  thanked  the  Great  Spirit  for  opening 
their  eyes  to  see,  and  their  ears  to  hear  the  happy  dawn  of 
peace.  I  told  them  that  peace  was  like  that  glorious  sun, 
which  diffused  joy,  health,  and  happiness  to  all  the  nations 
of  this  earth  who  had  wisdom  to  embrace  it;  and  that  I, 
therefore,  in  behalf,  and  in  the  name  of  the  President  of 
the  United  States  of  America,  took  them  all  by  the  hand, 
with  that  strong  hold  of  friendship  which  time  could  never 
break. 

"  These  have  been  the  sentiments  of  my  heart  with  re- 
gard to  peace,  and  I  think  may  be  considered  as  a  full  an- 
swer to  the  wishes  expressed  by  the  Little  Turtle.  To 
prove  that  my  sentiments  are  still  the  same,  I  present  to 
Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  and  to  the  Little  Turtle,  these  strings 
of  wampum,  which  are  not  purer  nor  whiter  than  the  heart 
that  gives  them.  These  will  be  considered  as  presented  to 
the  whole,  for  the  same  purpose."  [White  wampum  to  the 
Chippeways  and  Miamies.] 

"  The  Little  Turtle  observes, '  You  have  informed  us  that 
the  treaty  of  Muskingum  shall  be  the  foundation  on  which 
the  present  treaty  shall  be  founded.  That  treaty  was  held 
by  the  Six  Nations,  and  by  a  few  young  men  of  the  Chip- 
peways, Ottawas,  and  Pottawattamies.  We,  Miamies  and 
Wabash  tribes,  are  totally  unacquainted  with  it.'  And 
Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  has  also  remarked,  that  the  Otta- 
was, Chippeways,  and  Pottawattamies,  knew  nothing  of 
the  treaty — it  had  never  reached  as  far  as  Michilimackinac. 

"  Younger  Brothers!  In  order  to  refresh  your  memories, 
and  to  bring  every  article  of  that  treaty  fully  to  your  recol- 
lection, I  will  now  read  and  explain  it  to  you.  These  are 
the  articles  of  that  treaty,  made  more  than  six  years  ago, 
between  the  United  States  of  America,  and  the  Wyandots, 


216  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Delawares,  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  Pottawattamies  and 
Sauckeys.  [Here  he  read  and  explained  the  treaty  of  Fort 
Harmar,  made  in  1789.] 

"  Younger  Brothers!  You  have  now  heard  the  treaty  of 
Muskingum  read  and  explained  to  you.  It  has  been  for 
more  than  six  years,  well  understood  by  many  of  the  chiefs, 
now  present,  of  those  nations  who  concluded  it.  And  I  am 
persuaded  that  those  who  were  present,  and  those  who 
signed  it,  will  have  candor  sufficient,  when  they  hear  their 
names  called  over,  to  acknowledge  it,  as  their  act  and 
deed,  as  Masass  has  freely  and  sincerely  done,  the  day 
before  yesterday;  by  which  he  proved  himself  to  be  pos- 
sessed of  a  manly,  and  undisguised  heart. 

"  Younger  Brothers!  I  have  now  fully  explained  to  you, 
the  treaty  of  Fort  Mcintosh,  which  was  concluded  ten  years 
ago,  and  the  treaty  of  Muskingum,  which  took  place  six  years 
since.  The  boundaries  agreed  on  by  the  former  are  the 
same,  that  are  stipulated  by  the  latter.  I  have  also  pointed 
out  a  number  of  chiefs,  in  this  house,  who  were  present  at, 
and  signed  those  treaties.  As  I  have  refreshed  their  mem- 
ories, in  this  manner,  and  read  them  a  few  passages  of  their 
own  speeches  and  proceedings,  on  those  occasions,  it  is 
probable  they  will  be  able  to  inform  you  of  every  thing 
relating  thereto,  and  give  you  full  satisfaction  on  the  sub- 
ject. I  have  no  more  to  say  at  present.  I  wish  you  to 
consider  well  what  I  have  said  to  you,  that  we  may  be  en- 
abled to  form  a  treaty  that  shall  continue  unbroken,  as 
long  as  the  woods  grow,  and  waters  run.  Think  seriously 
on  the  great  business  before  you.  Consult  among  your- 
selves, and  when  we  meet  again,  speak  your  thoughts 
freely.  I  am  persuaded  we  shall  agree  in  opinion;  and 
when  we  return  home,  all  nations  will  have  cause  to  re- 
joice in  the  good  work  we  have  been  doing." 

IV-ke-te-le-mund,  a  Delaware  chief,  rose  and  said: 
"Elder  Brother!  We  are  happy  to  meet  you  here    this 
day.     The  Great  Spirit  is  kind,  in  permitting  us  to  meet 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  217 

as  brothers.  We  agree  with  what  you  have  this  day  said 
to  us.  Five  days  ago  you  told  us  what  you  said  last  win- 
ter, to  our  uncles,  the  Wyandots.  It  is  true,  brother,  they 
were  the  first  who  then  came  in  to  you.  We  were  happy 
to  hear  their  words,  when  they  returned.  We  sent  for- 
ward immediately  a  deputation  to  you,  with  our  grand- 
children, the  Shawanees,  and  with  them  two  prisoners. 

"  Brother!  When  our  king  returned,  and  proclaimed  the 
happy  news  from  you,  we  rejoiced  to  hear  it,  and  prepared 
to  come  in  and  fulfil  what  he  had  promised.  We  brought 
in  all  our  prisoners,  agreeably  to  your  desire,  and  in  con- 
formity to  our  chief's  engagements. 

"Brother!  So  far  we  have  evinced  our  disposition;  when 
we  meet  again,  we  shall  have  more  to  say  upon  the  good 
work  before  us." 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  a  Chippeway  chief,  rose  and  said : 

"Elder  Brother!  I  am  very  glad  you  have  pointed  out 
those  of  my  nation,  who  were  at,  and  signed  the  treaty  of 
Muskingum.  I  did  not  know  them  before.  That  treaty  did 
not  reach  us,  who  live  in  Michigan.  I  am  happy  in  having 
it  now  explained.  I  thank  you  for  expediting  our  good 
work.  We  wish  much  to  return  to  our  families,  many  of 
whom  have  died  since  we  left  home." 

Tuesday,  the  21st  of  July.  In  council — present  as  before. 
Masass,  a  Chippeway  chief,  rose  and  spoke  as  follows,  in 
behalf  of  the  three  fires,  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  and  Potta- 
wattamies : 

"  Elder  Brother !  I  have  heard  what  you  said  yesterday, 
and  know  it  to  be  the  same  that  was  said  at  the  treaty  of 
Muskingum.  I  remember  it  perfectly  well,  and  thought, 
whilst  I  heard  you  speak  it,  that  it  was  again  renewed. 
My  eyes  were  open,  and  I  listened  with  attention. 

"Elder  brother!  I  now  address  myself  to  you.  You  see 
the  fire  kindled  at  Muskingum.  I  now  tell  you,  that  some 
words  of  that  treaty  we  did  not  perfectly  understand,  at  the 
time  we  made  it.     The  Wyandots  were  foremost  at  that 


218  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

treaty;  we,  the  three  fires,  followed  them.  You  there  told 
us,  that  it  was  not  in  your  name  that  you  treated;  but  in 
behalf  of  the  thirteen  fires,  which  lie  along  the  great  water. 
You  told  us  you  would  throw  the  tomahawk  into  the  river ; 
but  you  know  the  waters  in  our  woods  are  not  deep ;  and 
some  foolish  young  men  have  had  arms  long  enough,  to 
reach  the  bottom,  and  again  take  it  out.  This  day  we  will 
try  to  wipe  away  their  bad  actions;  and  to  open  their 
hearts  to  the  voice  of  peace. 

" Elder  brother  I  I  live  at  the  gate  leading  to  all  those  na- 
tions, and  to  the  Pottawattamies,  and  those  living  in  the 
prairies ;  and  we,  the  three  fires,  will  do  our  utmost  to  bury 
the  hatchet  so  deep,  that  it  can  never  be  found;  for  it  is 
this  hatchet  which  has  reduced  us  to  misery  and  wretched- 
ness. I  tell  you  this  as  the  true  sentiments  of  the  three 
nations,  for  whom  I  speak.     I  cannot  answer  for  the  others. 

"  Elder  brother  I  You  see  the  wampum  I  hold  is  small. 
Our  three  fires,  it  would  appear,  are  also  small,  as  the 
other  nations  have  often  told  you.  They  have  also  told 
you,  that  they  were  masters  of  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways, 
and  Pottawattamies,  and  of  their  territory.  Notwithstand- 
ing I  am  so  small  a  man,  I  do  now,  in  the  name  of  the 
three  nations,  throw  the  hatchet  into  the  middle  of  the  great 
lake,  where  it  will  be  so  covered,  as  never  to  be  again 
found,  as  long  as  white  people  and  Indians  live. 

"  Elder  brother  !  This  is  all  these  three  fires  and  the  tribe 
of  the  Little  Turtle,  who  unites  with  us  in  sentiment,  have 
at  present  to  say.  The  hatchet  is  now  buried  forever,  and 
we  now  expect  your  assistance.  Your  officers  and  our 
warriors  are  now  around  us,  let  us  join  sincerely  in  making 
a  solid  and  lasting  peace.  Peace  with  our  three  fires  is 
now  established.     [A  string  of  blue  and  white  wampum.] 

"  Elder  brother !  You  do  not  forget  any  of  your  words, 
and  I  show  you  this  belt,  which  you  gave  a  great  many 
years  ago,  to  Wassung,  one  of  our  nation.  You  told  him, 
at  that  time,  that  upon  this  road,  he  should  always  come 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  219 

and   see  you, — that   he  would   always   find   it  free   from 
thorns.     [Presented  a  road-belt.] 

" Elder  brother!  When  you  yesterday  read  to  us  the  treaty 
of  Muskingum,  I  understood  you  clearly.  At  that  treaty, 
we  had  not  good  interpreters,  and  we  were  left  partly  un- 
acquainted with  many  particulars  of  it.  I  was  surprised 
when  I  heard  your  voice,  through  a  good  interpreter,  say 
that  we  had  received  presents  and  compensation  for  those 
lands  which  were  thereby  ceded.  I  tell  you  now,  that  we, 
the  three  fires,  never  were  informed  of  it.  If  our  uncles, 
the  Wyandots,  and  grand-fathers,  the  Delawares,  have 
received  such  presents,  they  have  kept  them  to  themselves. 
I  always  thought  that  we,  the  Ottaways,  Chippeways,  and 
Pottawattamies,  were  the  true  owners  of  those  lands;  but 
now  I  find  that  new  masters  have  undertaken  to  dispose  of 
them :  so  that  at  this  day  we  do  not  know  to  whom  they  of 
right  belong.  We  never  received  any  compensation  for 
them.  I  don't  know  how  it  is,  but  ever  since  that  treaty 
we  have  become  objects  of  pity,  and  our  fires  have  been 
retiring  from  this  country.  Now,  elder  brother,  you  see  we 
are  objects  of  compassion.  Have  pity  on  our  weakness 
and  misfortunes ;  and  since  you  have  purchased  these  lands, 
we  cede  them  to  you;  they  are  yours.  Perhaps  at  a  future 
day  your  younger  brothers  may  be  made  happy  by  becom- 
ing your  children,  should  you  extend  to  us  your  paternal 
protection.  This  is  all  your  younger  brothers,  the  three 
fires,  have  to  say  to  you,  our  elder  brother.  Now  the  great 
men  will  address  you." 

Tarkee,  chief  of  the  Wyandots,  rose  and  said: 
"  Brothers  of  the  fifteen  fires,  listen  !  And  you,  my  nephews, 
the  Delawares  and  Six  Nations,  younger  brothers,  Shawa- 
nees  and  Miamies,  and  elder  brothers,  Ottaways,  Chippe- 
ways and  Pottawattamies,  we  are  here  assembled  this  day, 
in  the  presence  of  God  above.  Brothers,  Americans!  Our 
brothers,  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  and  Pottawattamies, 
have  related  to  you  a  little  of  what  happened  at  the  treaty 


220  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

of  Muskingum,  and  observe  that  we  have  sold  the  lands  to 
you  without  their  consent  or  knowledge.  However,  elder 
brother,  I  hope  you  will  explain  to  them  how  the  country 
was  first  disposed  of  into  your  hands.  These  people  now 
claim  the  land,  and  must  establish  their  right  with  you. 
We  had  yesterday  some  counsel  among  ourselves  on  this 
subject.  We  feel  much  alarmed  at  these  words  of  our 
brothers,  claiming  in  this  manner  these  lands.  This  is 
all  I  have  at  present  to  say,  brothers." 

Tarkee  rose  again  and  continued  thus : 

"  Elder  brothers  of  all  nations  I  We  have  all  assembled  to 
effect  a  good  work.  My  nephews  and  I  have  been  talking 
together,  concerning  the  speech  of  Masass.  We  were  a 
little  confused  by  it,  and  now  leave  it  to  our  brothers,  the 
fifteen  fires,  to  say  whether  we  shall  now  speak  in  answer 
to  it,  or  consider  of  it  until  to-morrow." 

The  General  replied : 

"  Younger  brothers !  As  I  am  called  upon  by  the  Wyan- 
dots,  to  give  my  opinion  whether  they  shall  this  day  an- 
swer, the  speech  of  Masass,  or  consider  of  it  till  to-mor- 
row, I  will  give  it  freely.  I  do  think  it  will  be  better  to 
postpone  until  to-morrow;  because,  after  reflecting  coolly, 
and  sleeping,  the  answer  may  be  more  dispassionate  and 
pleasing  to  all.  I  am  convinced  that  Masass  had  no  inten- 
tion to  hurt  the  feelings  of  his  uncle,  and  grand-father;  he 
only  meant  to  inform  me,  that  he  had  not  received  any 
goods  or  compensation,  for  the  lands  ceded  by  the  treaty  of 
Muskingum.  When  we  come  into  articles,  presently,  for  a 
permanent  peace,  all  those  nations  who  have  any  right  to 
the  lands  in  question,  shall  receive  yet  farther  compensa- 
tion, I  hope,  to  the  satisfaction  of  all  parties." 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish  thus  spoke : 

"Elder  Brother!  I  take  you  by  the  hand;  I  now  tell 
you  I  am  not  come  here  to  take  umbrage  at  trifles,  but  to 
accomplish  the  great  and  serious  work  in  which  we  arc 
engaged.     My  heart  is  good,  and  I  will  not  be  interrupted 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  221 

by  little  things.  I  now  wish  to  know,  in  the  name  of  our 
three  fires,  how  long  we  may  have  to  remain  here,  on  this 
business.  When  I  first  entered  this  house  my  mind  was 
prepared  and  made  up.  We  live  at  a  great  distance  from 
here,  and  feel  anxious  to  return." 

The  General  replied  thus : 

"  Younger  brothers!  It  is  rather  difficult  for  me  to  say  how 
many  days  it  may  require  to  finally  settle  this  good  work. 
I  will  to-morrow  listen  to  what  our  brothers,  the  Wyandots, 
and  others,  have  to  say  upon  the  speech  of  Masass,  and 
then  I  shall  be  perfectly  ready  to  enter  upon  the  main  ob- 
ject of  this  meeting,  and  lay  before  you  the  articles  of  the 
treaty,  which  may  establish  the  happiness  and  peace  of  the 
fifteen  fires,  and  of  the  Indian  nations  now  assembled." 

Masass  rose  and  said : 

"  I  have  heard  the  words  of  my  elder  brother.  He  has 
heard  mine.  I  have  reflected  coolly;  I  approve  of  them, 
and  what  I  have  said,  I  will  never  retract." 

Little  Turtle  rose  and  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Elder  brother !  I  wish  to  ask  of  you  and  my  brothers 
present  one  question.  I  would  be  glad  to  know  what  lands 
have  been  ceded  to  you,  as  I  am  uninformed  in  this  par- 
ticular. I  expect  that  the  lands  on  the  Wabash,  and  in 
this  country,  belong  to  me  and  my  people.  I  now  take  the 
opportunity  to  inform  my  brothers  of  the  United  States 
and  others  present,  that  there  are  men  of  sense  and  under- 
standing among  my  people,  as  well  as  among  theirs,  and 
that  these  lands  were  disposed  of  without  our  knowledge 
or  consent.  I  was  yesterday  surprised,  when  I  heard  from 
our  grandfathers,  the  Delawares,  that  these  lands  had  been 
ceded  by  the  British,  to  the  Americans,  when  the  former 
were  beaten  by,  and  made  peace  with,  the  latter;  because 
you  had  before  told  us  that  it  was  the  Wyandots, 
Delawares,  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  Pottawattamies,  and 
Sauckeys,  who  had  made  this  cession." 

Council  adjourned. 


222  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Wednesday,  22d  July.  In  Council.  Present  as  before. 
The  Little  Turtle  spoke  as  follows : 

"  General  Wayne!  I  hope  you  will  pay  attention  to  what 
I  now  say  to  you.  I  wish  to  inform  you  where  your 
younger  brothers,  the  Miamies,  live,  and  also  the  Potta- 
wattamies  of  St.  Joseph,  together  with  the  Wabash  In- 
dians. You  have  pointed  out  to  us  the  boundary  line 
between  the  Indians  and  the  United  States ;  but  I  now  take 
the  liberty  to  inform  you,  that  that  line  cuts  off  from  the 
Indians  a  large  portion  of  country,  which  has  been  enjoyed 
by  my  forefathers,  time  immemorial,  without  molestation, 
or  dispute.  The  prints  of  my  ancestors'  houses  are  every- 
where to  be  seen  in  this  portion.  I  was  a  little  astonished 
at  hearing  you  and  my  brothers  who  are  now  present,  tell- 
ing each  other,  what  business  you  had  transacted  together, 
heretofore,  at  Muskingum,  concerning  this  country.  It  is 
well  known  by  all  my  brothers  present,  that  my  forefather 
kindled  the  first  fire  at  Detroit ;  from  thence  he  extended 
his  lines  to  the  head  waters  of  Scioto ;  from  thence  to  its 
mouth;  from  thence  down  the  Ohio  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Wabash;  and  from  thence  to  Chicago,  on  Lake  Michigan. 
At  this  place  I  first  saw  my  elder  brothers,  the  Shawanees. 
I  have  now  informed  you  of  the  boundaries  of  the  Miami 
nation,  where  the  Great  Spirit  placed  my  forefather  a  long 
time  ago,  and  charged  him  not  to  sell,  or  part  with  his 
lands,  but  to  preserve  them  for  his  posterity.  This  charge 
has  been  handed  down  to  me.  I  was  much  surprised  to 
find  that  my  other  brothers  differed  so  much  from  me  on 
this  subject;  for  their  conduct  would  lead  me  to  suppose. 
that  the  Great  Spirit  and  their  forefathers,  had  not  given 
them  the  same  charge  that  was  given  to  me;  but  on  the 
contrary,  had  directed  them  to  sell  their  lands  to  any  white 
man  who  wore  a  hat,  as  soon  as  he  should  ask  it  of  them. 
Now,  elder  brother,  your  younger  brothers,  the  Miamies, 
have  pointed   out  to  you,  their  country,  and   also  to  our 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  223 

brothers  present.  When  I  hear  your  remarks  and  propo- 
sals on  this  subject,  I  will  be  ready  to  give  you  an  answer. 
I  came  with  an  expectation  of  hearing  you  say  good  things, 
but  I  have  not  yet  heard  what  I  had  expected. 

"  Brothers,  the  Indians  !  I  expected,  in  this  council,  that 
our  minds  would  have  been  made  up,  and  that  we  should 
speak  with  one  voice.  I  am  sorry  to  observe,  that  you  are 
rather  unsettled,  and  hasty  in  your  conduct." 

Tarkee,  the  Wyandot,  rose  and  spoke  thus : 

"Elder  brother!  Now  listen  to  us.  The  Great  Spirit 
above  has  appointed  this  day  for  us  to  meet  together.  I 
shall  now  deliver  my  sentiments  to  you,  the  fifteen  fires. 
I  view  you,  lying  in  a  gore  of  blood.  It  is  me,  an  Indian, 
who  has  caused  it.  Our  tomahawk  yet  remains  in  your 
head — the  English  gave  it  to  me  to  place  there. 

"  Elder  brother !  I  now  take  the  tomahawk  out  of  your 
head;  but  with  so  much  care  that  you  shall  not  feel  pain, 
or  injury.  I  will  now  tear  a  big  tree  up  by  the  roots,  and 
throw  the  hatchet  into  the  cavity  which  they  occupy;  where 
the  waters  will  wash  it  away,  to  where  it  can  never  be 
found.  Now,  I  have  buried  the  hatchet,  and  I  expect  that 
none  of  my  color,  will  ever  again  find  it  out.  I  now  tell 
you,  that  no  one  in  particular  can  justly  claim  this  ground 
— it  belongs,  in  common,  to  us  all.  No  earthly  being  has 
an  exclusive  right  to  it.  The  Great  Spirit  above  is  the  true 
and  only  owner  of  this  soil ;  and  he  has  given  us  all  an 
equal  right  to  it."     [Spoken  on  a  blue  belt.] 

"Brothers,  the  fifteen  fires,  listen!  You  now  see  that  we 
have  buried  the  hatchet.  We  still  see  blood  around ;  and 
in  order  to  clear  away  all  grief,  we  now  wipe  away  the 
blood  from  around  you,  which  together  with  the  dirt  that 
comes  away  with  it,  we  bury  with  the  hatchet,  in  the  hole 
we  have  made  for  them;  and  replace  the  great  tree,  as  it 
stood  before;  so  that  our  children,  nor  our  children's  chil- 
dren, can  ever  again  discover  it."  [Spoken  on  a  blue  string 
attached,  and  both  delivered.] 


224  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Brothers,  listen !  I  now  wipe  your  body  clean  from  all 
blood,  with  this  white,  soft  linen  (a  white  wampum)  and  I 
do  it  with  as  much  tenderness  as  I  am  capable  of.  You 
have  appointed  this  house  for  the  chiefs  of  the  different 
tribes  to  sit  in  with  you,  and  none  but  good  words  ought  to 
be  spoken  in  it.  I  have  swept  it  clean — nothing  impure 
remains  in  it. 

"  Brothers,  listen  !  We  are  both  placed  on  this  ground.  I 
now  wipe  the  tears  from  your  eyes,  and  open  your  ears.  I 
see  your  throat  is  so  stopped  that  you  are  nearly  suffocated 
— I  now  open  your  throat,  and  make  it  quite  clean,  that 
whatever  the  Great  Spirit  may  think  proper  for  you  to 
swallow,  may  go  down,  without  any  obstruction.  I  see 
also,  that  your  heart  is  not  in  its  true  situation — I  now 
place  it  in  its  proper  position,  that  any  thing  you  may  hear 
from  us,  your  brothers,  may  descend  directly  to  it;  and  what 
you  shall  say,  may  come  with  truth  and  ease  from  it. 

"  Brother?  I  clear  away  yon  hovering  clouds,  that  we  may 
enjoy  a  clear,  bright  day,  and  easily  see  the  sun,  which  the 
Great  Spirit  has  bestowed  on  us,  to  rise  and  set,  continu- 
ally."    [A  white  string.] 

"  Brother !  Listen  to  us,  Indians,  who  now  speak  to  you. 
The  bones  which  lie  scattered,  of  your  ancient  warriors, 
who  fell  in  defence  of  the  present  cause,  we  gather  all  to- 
gether, and  bury  them  now,  and  place  this  white  board  over 
them,  that  they  may  never  again  be  seen  by  our  posterity." 
[A  white  and  blue  belt  and  string.] 

"  Brother  warrior!  Listen  to  us !  The  great  chiefs  are 
now  about  to  speak  to  you.  You  chiefs  and  warriors  pres- 
ent,  listen  also! 

"Brother!  We  speak  not  from  our  lips,  but  from  our 
hearts,  when  we  are  resolved  upon  good  works.  I  always 
told  you  that  I  never  intended  to  deceive  you,  when  we  en- 
tered upon  this  business.  It  was  never  the  intention  of  us 
Indians,  to  do  so.  I  speak  from  my  heart  what  I  now  say 
to  you.     The  Great  Spirit  is  now  viewing  us,  and   did  he 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  225 

discover  any  baseness  or  treachery,  it  would  excite  his  just 
anger  against  us. 

"  Brother?  Listen  to  me.  We  are  all  of  one  mind,  who 
are  here  assembled.  This  is  a  business  not  to  be  trifled 
with — it  is  a  matter  of  the  utmost  concern  to  us.  We  hap- 
pily so  far  agree  in  handling  our  ancestors'  records,  who 
always  worked  for  peace. 

"  Brother!  You  have  proposed  to  us  to  build  our  good 
work  on  the  treaty  of  Muskingum.  That  treaty,  I  have 
always  considered  as  formed  upon  the  fairest  principles. 
You  took  pity  on  us  Indians — you  did  not  do  as  our  fathers, 
the  British,  agreed  you  should.  You  might  by  that  agree- 
ment, have  taken  all  our  lands ;  but  you  pitied  us,  and  let 
us  hold  part.  I  always  looked  upon  that  treaty  to  be  bind- 
ing upon  the  United  States,  and  us  Indians. 

"  Brotlier!  Listen  to  us  Indians — I  told  you  just  now,  that 
we  were  upon  business  of  the  greatest  moment.  I  now 
conclude  the  great  good  work  we  have  been  employed  in ; 
and  with  this,  I  cover  the  whole  earth,  that  it  may  appear 
white,  and  shine  all  over  the  world.  I  hope  the  Great  Spirit 
will  have  pity  on  us,  and  make  this  work  lasting."  [Four 
large  mixed  belts  presented.] 

"  Brother!  I  am  going  to  relate  to  you  the  treaty  made  at 
Muskingum,  in  a  few  words.  I  have  not  forgotten  that 
treaty;  neither  have  you.  At  that  time  we  settled  a  peace, 
between  the  Delawares,  Six  Nations,  Ottawas,  Chippeways, 
Pottawattamies,  and  us  Wyandots.  It  is  very  true  there 
were  not  so  many  different  nations  then  assembled,  as  are 
now  present.  We  now  establish  a  general,  permanent,  and 
lasting  peace,  forever. 

"  Brothers  !  We  are  all  sensible  that  when  you  struck  the 
boundary,  at  that  time,  it  run  from  Tuscarawas  to  a  little 
below  Loramies,  where  the  fort  stood,  which  was  destroyed 
in  1752.  I  understand  the  line  has  since  been  moved,  a 
little  towards  us.  Be  strong,  brothers,  and  fulfil  your  en- 
gagements. 
15 


226  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Brothers,  listen!  I  have  told  you  that  I  speak  from  my 
heart — you  see  the  speeches  I  have  delivered.  Peruse  them 
and  see  whether  or  not  I  have  spoken  with  sincerity.  This 
is  all  your  brothers  of  the  different  nations  present  have 
this  day  to  say  to  you."     [A  large  belt.] 

The  General  rose  and  spoke  as  follows  : 

"  Younger  Brothers!  I  have  listened  with  great  attention 
to  every  thing  you  have  said  this  day.  I  find  the  hatchet 
has  been  buried,  by  all  the  nations  present.  I  shall  peruse 
these  belts,  speeches  and  boundaries,  now  laid  before  me, 
with  great  attention,  and  I  am  convinced  they  will  agree 
with  the  records  in  my  possession.  The  day  is  far  spent, 
and  we  will  now  separate,  to  meet  again  to-morrow  morn- 
ing, and  proceed  in  this  good  work."     Council  adjourned. 

Thursday,  23d  of  July — In  Council — Present  as  before. 
Blue  Jacket,  a  Shawanee  chief,  arose  and  addressed  the  In- 
dians as  follows : 

"  Brothers!  I  hope  you  will  not  take  amiss,  my  changing 
my  seat  in  this  council.  You  all  know  the  Wyandots 
are  our  uncles,  and  the  Delawares  our  grandfathers ;  and 
that  the  Shawanees  are  the  elder  brothers  of  the  other  na- 
tions present.  It  is  therefore  proper,  I  should  sit  next  my 
grandfathers  and  uncles.  I  hope,  younger  brothers,  you 
are  all  satisfied  with  what  our  uncles  said  yesterday,  and 
that  I  have  done  every  thing  in  my  power,  at  all  times  to 
advise  and  support  you." 

A-goosh-a-way,  an  Ottawa  chief,  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Brothers,  the  Indians!  When  I  last  had  my  calumet  of 
peace,  our  elder  brothers,  the  Shawanees,  were  not  present. 
I  now  offer  it  to  them,  that  the  sentiments  of  their  hearts 
may  be  similar  to  ours.  All  you  nations  present,  know  this 
to  be  the  calumet  of  the  three  fires.  It  is  six  years  since  it 
was  sent  from  the  north,  to  Michilimackinac,  to  the  three 
fires  who  live  at  the  gate,  to  be  presented  by  them  to  the 
Wyandots,  Delawares,  and  Shawanees,  with  an  injunction 
always  to  hide  it  when  anything  bail   was  in   motion;  but 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  227 

to  display  it  when  any  thing  good  was  contemplated.  You 
all  know  the  importance  of  this  sacred  token  of  peace 
among  us  Indians. 

"Brother!  I  do  not  consider  you  as  a  brother — I  view 
you  as  a  friend.  I  present  you  this  calumet,  that  came  far 
from  the  north,  and  has  gone  round  all  the  lakes.  When 
it  was  sent  to  us,  the  stem  pointed  towards  you  (the  east.) 
Now  my  friend,  you  may  do  with  this  pipe  what  you  please. 
If  you  think  proper,  you  may  point  it  towards  the  fifteen 
fires,  and  afterwards  turn  it  towards  us.  It  is  entirely  at 
your  disposal — I  am  ordered  to  deliver  it  into  your  hands.' 
[Delivers  the  pipe.] 

"Friend!  I  now  present  you  with  a  belt,  which  has  been 
given  to  us  by  the  Hurons,  who  received  it  from  our  bro- 
thers, the  Americans,  as  a  seat  upon  which  we  all  should 
sit  and  rest.  Our  father,  at  Detroit,  has  always  endeavor- 
ed to  lead  us  off  from  this  seat ;  but  we  never  listened  to 
him — we  consider  it  as  a  carpet,  spread  for  our  use ;  and 
we  now  show  it  to  you  that  you  may  recognize  it."  [A 
large  belt,  with  men,  and  a  house,  designated  upon  it.] 

Masass,  a  Chippeway  chief,  arose  and  spoke  as  follows : 

"Elder  brother!  This  great  calumet  comes,  not  from  the 
little  lake  near  us,  but  from  the  great  lake  Superior,  to  the 
north:  from  whence  our  great  chiefs  and  warriors  come. 

"Elder  brother!  When  I  returned  from  the  treaty  of  Mus- 
kingum, I  repeated  the  substance  of  its  proceedings,  to  my 
nation.  You  therefore  see,  that  your  words  have  gone  a 
great  way  ;  even  to  Lake  Superior. 

"Brother!  I  live  at  a  great  distance  from  you;  but  when 
you  call  a  council,  I  hear  your  voice  immediately,  and  I 
come  without  delay.  You  now  see  all  your  brothers 
around  you.  We  are  well  acquainted  with  what  we  are 
now  doing,  and  what  we  have  done  heretofore.  The  white 
beads  on  this  belt,  denote  the  number  of  large  villages,  from 
the  north,  who  have  heard  your  word."  [A  belt  with  nine 
white  squares.] 


228  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  spoke  as  follows : 

"Elder  brother,  and  all  you  present,  listen  to  me  with  atten- 
tion! When  the  Great  Spirit  made  the  world,  he  put  me 
at  Michilimackinac,  where  I  first  drew  my  breath.  At  first, 
I  was  entirely  naked,  and  destitute ;  and  as  if  he  had  com- 
passion on  me,  he  pointed  out  to  me  the  way  to  the  white 
people.  I  followed  his  path  and  found  them  below  Que- 
bec, at  the  Falls  of  Montmorenci.  I  was  satisfied  the  Great 
Spirit  pitied  us,  for  you  whites  had  all  pity  on  us,  and 
hence  we  always  loved  you.  The  Great  Spirit  has  blessed 
you  with  greater  knowledge  than  we  are  possessed  of — 
you  are  therefore  entitled  to  great  respect.  When  we  first 
found  the  French  whites,  we  took  them  to  our  fires,  and 
they  have  lived  among  us  ever  since."     [A  white  string.] 

"Elder  brother!  You  see  all  your  brothers  assembled 
here,  in  consequence  of  your  messages  last  winter.  At 
that  time  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  Pottawattamies,  some 
who  call  themselves  Sauckeys,  and  the  Miamies,  heard 
your  words.  You  remember,  brother,  I  then  told  you,  that  I 
would  withdraw  the  dark  cloud  from  your  eyes,  that  you 
might  know  us  again.  You  see  I  have  done  so,  for  you 
now  behold  us  all  clearly.  At  the  same  time  I  told  you,  I 
would  open  both  your  ears  and  my  own,  that  we  might 
hear  each  other  clearly.  Our  ears  are  opened  accordingly, 
and  we  hear  and  understand  accurately.  I  now  speak  to 
you  with  a  pure  heart.  This  white  wampum  testifies  our 
sincerity,  and  unanimity  in  sentiment.  I  now  put  your 
heart  in  its  right  place,  as  you  did  mine ;  that  you  may 
make  known  to  the  fifteen  fires,  what  I  now  tell  you."  [A 
blue  and  white  string.] 

" Elder  brother!  When  I  view  my  situation,  I  consider 
myself  as  an  object  of  compassion. 

"Elder  brother,  listen  to  me !  As  I  told  you  last  winter,  if 
we  Indians  have  acted  wrong,  we  are  not  entirely  to  blame. 
It  was  our  father,  the  British,  who  urged  us  to  bad  deeds, 
and  reduced  us  to  our  present  state  of  misery*     lb'  per* 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  229 

suaded  us  to  shed  all  the  blood  we  have  spilled.  You,  this 
day,  see  me  fulfil  my  promise.  With  this  belt  I  cover  all 
the  slain,  together  with  our  evil  actions."      [A  white  belt.] 

"Elder  brother,  listen  to  me  with  attention  !  I  speak  in 
the  name  of  all  present.  You  see  that  I  am  worthy  of  your 
compassion.  When  I  look  upward,  I  see  the  sky  serene 
and  happy,  and  when  I  look  on  the  earth,  I  see  all  my  chil- 
dren wandering  in  the  utmost  misery  and  distress.  I  tell 
you  this,  to  inform  you,  I  have  never  moved  my  fire — that 
I  still  live  where  the  Great  Spirit  first  placed  me."  [A 
belt.] 

"Elder  brother,  listen  !  The  Great  Spirit  above  hears  us, 
and  I  trust  we  shall  not  endeavor  to  deceive  each  other.  I 
expect  what  we  are  about  to  do,  shall  never  be  forgotten  as 
long  as  we  exist.  When  I  show  you  this  belt,  I  point  out 
to  you  your  children,  at  one  end  of  it,  and  mine  at  the 
other;  and  I  would  solicit  the  fifteen  fires,  and  their  women 
and  children,  to  have  pity  on  my  helpless  offspring.  I  now 
tell  you  that  we  will  assist  you,  to  the  utmost  of  our  power, 
to  do  what  is  right.  Remember,  we  have  taken  the  Great 
Spirit,  to  witness  our  present  actions.  We  will  make  a 
new  world,  and  leave  nothing  on  it,  to  incommode  our 
children."     [A  white  belt.] 

"  Elder  brother  !  I  now  use  this  white  wampum,  that  the 
words  I  utter,  may  descend  to  the  bottom  of  your  heart,  and 
that  of  the  fifteen  fires. 

" Elder  brother!  I  was  not  disposed  to  take  up  the  hatchet 
against  you  ;  it  was  forced  into  my  hands  by  the  white 
people.  I  now  throw  it  into  the  middle  of  the  deepest  lake, 
from  wrhence  no  mortal  can  bring  it  back. 

"Brother!  I  have  thrown  my  hatchet  into  a  bottomless 
lake,  from  whence  it  never  will  return.  I  hope  you  will 
also  throw  yours  so  far,  that  it  may  never  again  be  found." 
[A  string  blue  and  white.] 

"  Brother !  After  hearing  all  your  words,  my  heart  feels 
easy,  and  in  its  proper  place.     I  do  not  speak  to  you  about 


230  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

lands ;  for  why  should  I  ?  You  have  told  us  we  might  hunt 
upon  your  lands.  You  need  not  apprehend  any  injury  from 
us — we  will  for  the  future,  live  and  hunt  in  peace  and  hap- 
piness. 

" Elder  brother !  You  see  before  you  all  my  war-chiefs. 
They  never  go  ahead  of  their  commander ;  they  ever  obey 
and  follow  his  orders.  When  I  was  here  last  winter  you 
expressed  a  desire  to  see  them.  You  told  me  you  would 
treat  them  well,  but  they  say  they  have  not  seen  this  treat- 
ment, and  enquire  the  cause  of  this  alteration."  [A  blue 
string.] 

New  Corn,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  rose  and  spoke  thus : 
"  Elder  brother !    Had  you  seen  me  in  former  days  you 
would  have  beheld  a  great  and  brave  chief,  but  now  I  am 
old  and  burdened  with  the  weight  of  years. 

"  Elder  brother  !  I  take  you  and  the  fifteen  fires  by  the 
hand,  with  the  lively  feelings  of  a  brother.  I  am  old,  but 
age  does  not  prevent  me  from  assisting  in  good  works.  I 
am  happy  and  satisfied  with  the  words  you  have  spoken, 
and  those  delivered  by  my  brother  Indians.  Our  satisfac- 
tion is  general; — when  a  chief  rises  to  speak  I  wish  him 
to  speak  nothing  but  truth ;  because  I  feel  for  my  young 
men,  women,  and  children,  whose  happiness  I  have  deep 
at  heart.  I  must  observe,  that  I  never  received  any  part 
of  the  compensation  given  at  the  treaty  of  Muskingum. 
Our  chiefs  are  all  well  disposed,  and  I  hope  every  thing 
that  passes  between  you  and  them,  may  be  marked  with 
sincerity  and  truth.  My  nation  consists  of  one  thousand 
men,  who  live  at  and  between  Detroit  and  Lake  Michigan. 
We  have  the  Miamies  for  our  allies,  and  we  mutually 
assist  each  other.  I  am  by  birth  a  Sac ;  I  married  a  Potta- 
wattamie, and  have  resided  amongst  them.  Twenty-three 
chiefs  of  that  nation  are  inferior  to  me  in  command."  [A 
belt.] 

The  General  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Younger  brothers  I    I  have  heard,  with  due  attention,  all 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  03 1 

that  you  this  day  have  said.  To-morrow  I  will  reply  fully 
to  you.  My  plate  and  my  table  are  not  very  large.  They 
could  not  entertain  all  present  at  one  time,  but  I  hope  to 
see  all  your  chiefs  in  person,  and  in  due  rotation,  before  we 
part.  In  the  meantime  you  must  acknowledge  that  I  have 
helped  your  plates  pretty  well,  and  kept  them  full  all 
around  me.  I  will  send  you  a  little  liquor  this  evening; 
but  I  hope  you  will  keep  your  heads  clear  to  attend  to 
what  I  shall  say  to-morrow."     Council  adjourned. 

Friday,  24th  July.  In  council.  Present  as  before.  Blue 
Jacket,  a  Shawanee  chief,  rose  and  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Brotlwrs  !  You  know  that  we,  the  Seven  Nations,  have 
always  been  of  one  opinion.  You  know  also  that  our 
uncles  have  always  taken  care  of  the  great  fire,  they  being 
the  oldest  nation.  Our  elder  brother  will  therefore  address 
his  words  to  our  uncle,  the  Wyandot,  who  will  hand  them 
round  through  the  different  nations." 

The  General  rose  and  spoke  as  follows : 

"Brothers,  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  and  Pottawattamie  si 
Open  your  ears  and  be  attentive !  I  have  heard  writh  very 
great  pleasure,  the  sentiments  delivered  by  Masass,  as  the 
unanimous  voice  of  your  three  nations.  When  Mash-i-pi- 
nash-i-wrish,  your  uncle,  came  to  me  last  winter,  I  took  him 
to  my  bosom,  and  delivered  him  the  key  of  all  my  forts 
and  garrisons;  and  my  heart  rejoices  when  I  look  around 
me,  and  see  so  many  of  your  chiefs  and  warriors  assembled 
here,  in  consequence  of  that  happy  meeting.  It  will  give 
infinite  pleasure  to  General  Washington,  the  great  chief  of 
the  fifteen  fires,  when  I  inform  him  you  have  thrown  the 
hatchet,  with  so  strong  an  arm,  that  it  has  reached  the 
middle,  and  sunk  to  the  bottom  of  the  great  lake,  and  that 
it  is  now  so  covered  with  sand  that  it  can  never  again  be 
found.  The  belt  which  was  given  to  Wassung,  many 
years  since,  establishing  a  road  between  you  and  the  fifteen 
fires,  I  now  return,  renewed  and  cleared  of  all  the  brush 
and  brambles  with  which  time  had  scattered  it. 


232  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Brothers  of  the  three  great  fires (  You  say  you  thought  you 
were  the  proper  owners  of  the  land,  that  was  sold  to  the 
fifteen  fires,  at  the  treaty  of  Muskingum ;  but  you  say  also, 
that  you  never  received  any  compensation  for  those  lands. 
It  was  always  the  wish  and  intention  of  the  fifteen  fires, 
that  the  true  owners  of  those  lands  should  receive  a  full  com- 
pensation for  them.  If  you  did  not  receive  a  due  propor- 
tion of  the  goods,  as  original  proprietors,  it  was  not  the 
fault  of  the  United  States;  on  the  contrary,  the  United 
States  have  paid  twice  for  those  lands ;  first  at  the  treaty 
of  Mcintosh,  ten  years  ago,  and  next  at  that  of  Muskingum, 
six  years  since. 

"  Younger  brothers!  Notwithstanding  that  these  lands 
have  been  twice  paid  for,  by  the  fifteen  fires,  at  the  places 
I  have  mentioned,  yet  such  is  the  justice  and  liberality  of 
the  United  States,  that  they  will  now,  a  third  time,  make 
compensation  for  them."    [A  large  string  to  the  three  fires.] 

"  Brothers,  the  Miamies!  I  have  paid  attention  to  what  the 
Little  Turtle  said,  two  days  since,  concerning  the  lands 
which  he  claims.  He  said  his  father  first  kindled  the  fire 
at  Detroit,  and  stretched  his  line  from  thence  to  the  head 
waters  of  Scioto  ;  thence  down  the  same  to  the  Ohio  ; 
thence  down  that  river  to  the  mouth  of  the  Wabash,  and 
from  thence  to  Chicago,  on  the  south  west  end  of  lake 
Michigan;  and  observed  that  his  forefathers  had  enjoyed 
that  country,  undisturbed,  from  time  immemorial. 

"  Brothers!  These  boundaries  enclose  a  very  large  space 
of  country  indeed;  they  embrace,  if  I  mistake  not,  all  the 
lands  on  which  all  the  nations  now  present  live,  as  well  as 
those  which  have  been  ceded  to  the  United  States.  The 
lands  which  have  been  ceded  have  within  these  three  days 
been  acknowledged  by  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  Potta- 
wattamies,  Wyandots,  Delawares,  and  Shawanees.  The 
Little  Turtle  says,  the  prints  of  his  forefathers'  houses  are 
everywhere  to  be  seen  within  these  boundaries.  Yoiuigt  r 
brother!  it  is  true  these  prints  are  to  be  observed,  but  at  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  233 

same  time  we  discover  the  marks  of  French  possessions 
throughout  this  country,  which  were  established  long  before 
we  were  born.  These  have  since  been  in  the  possession  of 
the  British,  who  must,  in  their  turn,  relinquish  them  to  the 
United  States,  when  they,  the  French  and  the  Indians,  will 
be  all  as  one  people.     [A  white  string.] 

"  I  will  point  out  to  you  a  few  places  where  I  discover 
strong  traces  of  these  establishments;  and  first  of  all,  I  find 
at  Detroit,  a  very  strong  print,  where  the  fire  was  first  kin- 
dled by  your  forefathers ;  next  at  Vincennes  on  the  Wabash; 
again  at  Musquiton,  on  the  same  river;  a  little  higher  up 
on  that  stream,  they  are  to  be  seen  at  Ouitanon.  I  discover 
another  strong  trace  at  Chicago ;  another  on  the  St.  Joseph's 
of  lake  Michigan.  I  have  seen  distinctly,  the  prints  of  a 
French  and  of  a  British  post,  at  the  Miami  villages,  and  of 
a  British  post  at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids,  now  in  their  posses- 
sion. Prints,  very  conspicuous,  are  on  the  Great  Miami, 
which  wTere  possessed  by  the  French,  forty-five  years  ago ; 
and  another  trace,  is  very  distinctly  to  be  seen  at  Sandusky. 

"  It  appears  to  me,  that  if  the  Great  Spirit,  as  you  say, 
charged  your  forefathers  to  preserve  their  lands  entire,  for 
their  posterity,  they  have  paid  very  little  regard  to  the  sa- 
cred injunction,  for  I  see  they  have  parted  with  those  lands 
to  your  fathers  the  French — and  the  English  are  now,  or 
have  been,  in  possession  of  them  all :  therefore,  I  think  the 
charge  urged  against  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways  and  other 
Indians,  comes  with  a  bad  grace  indeed,  from  the  very  peo- 
ple who,  perhaps,  set  them  the  example.  The  English  and 
French  both  wore  hats  ;  and  yet  your  forefathers  sold  them, 
at  various  times,  portions  of  your  lands.  However,  as  I 
have  already  observed,  you  shall  now  receive  from  the  Uni- 
ted States,  further  valuable  compensation  for  the  lands  you 
have  ceded  to  them  by  former  treaties. 

"  Younger  brothers!  I  will  now  inform  you  who  it  was 
who  gave  us  these  lands  in  the  first  instance ; — it  was  your 
fathers  the  British,  who  did  not  discover  that  care  for  your 


234  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

interests  which  you  ought  to  have  experienced.  This  is  the 
treaty  of  peace,  made  between  the  United  States  of  Ame- 
rica and  Great  Britain,  twelve  years  ago,  at  the  end  of  a 
long  and  bloody  war,  when  the  French  and  Americans 
proved  too  powerful  for  the  British :  on  these  terms  they  ob- 
tained peace.     [Here  part  of  the  treaty  of  1783  was  read.] 

"  Here  you  perceive,  that  all  the  country  south  of  the  great 
lakes  has  been  given  up  to  America;  but  the  United  States 
never  intended  to  take  that  advantage  of  you,  which  the 
British  placed  in  their  hands;  they  wish  you  to  enjoy  your 
just  rights,  without  interruption,  and  to  promote  your  hap- 
piness. The  British  stipulated  to  surrender  to  us  all  the 
posts  on  this  side  of  the  boundary  agreed  on.  I  told  you 
some  days  ago,  that  treaties  should  ever  be  sacredly  ful- 
filled by  those  who  make  them ;  but  the  British,  on  their 
part,  did  not  find  it  convenient  to  relinquish  those  posts  as 
soon  as  they  should  have  done;  however,  they  now  find  it 
so,  and  a  precise  period  is  fixed  for  their  delivery.  I  have 
now  in  my  hand  the  copy  of  a  treaty,  made  eight  months 
since,  between  them  and  us,  of  which  I  will  read  you  a 
little.     [First  and  second  articles  of  Mr.  Jay's  treaty  read. 

"  By  this  solemn  agreement  they  promise  to  retire  from 
Michilimackinac,  Fort  St.  Clair,  Detroit,  Niagara,  and  all 
other  places  on  this  side  of  the  lakes,  in  ten  moons  from 
this  period,  and  leave  the  same  to  the  full  and  quiet  posses- 
sion of  the  United  States. 

"  Brothers  !  All  nations  present,  now  listen  to  me  ! 

"  Having  now  explained  those  matters  to  you,  and  in- 
formed you  of  all  things  I  judged  necessary  for  your  infor- 
mation, we  have  nothing  to  do  but  to  bury  the  hatchet, 
and  draw  a  veil  over  past  misfortunes.  As  you  have 
buried  our  dead,  with  the  concern  of  brothers,  so  I  now 
collect  the  bones  of  your  slain  warriors,  put  them  into  a 
deep  pit  which  I  have  dug,  and  cover  them  carefully  over 
with  this  large  belt,  there  to  remain  undisturbed.  I  also 
dry  the  tears  from  your  eyes,  and  wipe  the  blood  from  your 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  235 

bodies,  with  this  soft  white  linen.  No  bloody  traces  will 
ever  lead  to  the  graves  of  your  departed  heroes  ;  with  this, 
I  wipe  all  such  away.  I  deliver  it  to  your  uncle,  the  Wy- 
andot, who  will  send  it  round  amongst  you.  [A  large  belt, 
with  a  white  string  attached.] 

"  I  now  take  the  hatchet  out  of  your  heads,  and  with  a 
strong  arm,  throw  it  into  the  centre  of  the  great  ocean, 
where  no  mortal  can  ever  find  it;  and  I  now  deliver  to  you 
the  wide  and  straight  path  to  the  fifteen  fires,  to  be  used 
by  you  and  your  posterity,  forever.  So  long  as  you  con- 
tinue to  follow  this  road,  so  long  will  you  continue  to  be  a 
happy  people.  You  see  it  is  straight  and  wide,  and  they 
will  be  blind  indeed,  who  deviate  from  it.  I  place  it  also, 
in  your  uncle's  hands,  that  he  may  preserve  it  for  you.  [A 
large  road  belt.] 

"  I  will,  the  day  after  to-morrow,  show  you  the  cessions 
which  you  have  made  to  the  United  States,  and  point  out 
to  you  the  lines  which  may,  for  the  future,  divide  your  lands 
from  theirs;  and,  as  you  will  have  to-morrow  to  rest,  I 
will  order  you  a  double  allowance  of  drink,  because  we 
have  now  buried  the  hatchet,  and  performed  every  necessary 
ceremony,  to  render  propitious,  our  renovated  friendship." 

Tarkee,  chief  of  the  Wyandots,  arose,  and  spoke  as 
follows  : 

"  Brothers,  the  fifteen  fires,  listen !  and  all  you  chiefs  and 
warriors  present.  This  is  a  day  appointed  by  the  Great 
Spirit  above,  for  us ;  he  has  taken  pity  on  us  all,  and  dis- 
posed us  to  perfect  this  good  work.  You  have  all  heard 
what  our  elder  brother  has  said  on  these  two  belts.  We 
will  all  now  return  thanks  to  this  great  chief,  and  to  the 
great  chief  of  the  fifteen  fires,  for  their  goodness  towards 
us ;  and  we  will,  at  the  same  time,  offer  our  acknowledge- 
ments to  the  Great  Spirit,  for  it  is  he  alone,  who  has 
brought  us  together,  and  caused  us  to  agree  in  the  good 
works  which  have  been  done.  My  thanks  are  also  due  to 
you,  chiefs  and  warriors  present."     Council  adjourned. 


CHAPTER    XII. 

Treaty  of  Greenville  concluded,  signed  and  ratified. — Numbers  of  the  differ- 
ent tribes  of  Indians  parties  to  the  treaty. — Proclamation  of  Gen.  Wayne. 

Monday,  27th  July.  In  Council.  Present  as  before. 
The  General  arose  and  addressed  the  Indians  as  follows : 

"  Younger  brothers I  When  we  were  last  in  council,  I  in- 
formed you  that  I  would,  on  this  day,  describe  the  general 
boundary  line,  that  shall  be  proposed,  to  divide  the  lands  of 
the  United  States,  or  fifteen  great  fires  of  America,  from  those 
belonging  to  the  Indian  nations,  which  I  will  now  proceed 
to  do,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  prevent  mistakes  or  disputes 
in  future,  respecting  that  boundary.  I  will  therefore  read 
and  explain  to  you,  the  several  articles  of  a  treaty,  upon 
which  a  permanent  peace  shall  be  established  between  the 
United  States  of  America,  and  all  the  Indian  tribes  north- 
west of  the  Ohio. 

"  You  will,  therefore,  younger  brothers,  open  your  ears 
to  hear,  and  your  hearts  to  understand,  all  and  every  of  the 
articles  of  agreement  which  I  hold  in  my  hand." 

[Here  the  General  read  the  proposed  articles  of  treaty, 
and  in  explanation  of  the  3d,  made  the  following  obser- 
vations :] 

"  Younger  brothers  I  I  wish  you  clearly  to  understand  the 
object  of  these  reservations.  They  are  not  intended  to 
annoy  you,  or  impose  the  smallest  degree  of  restraint  on 
you,  in  the  quiet  and  full  possession  of  your  lands,  but  to 
connect  the  settlements  of  the  people  of  the  United  States, 
by  rendering  a  passage  from  one  to  the  other,  more  practi- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  037  . 

cable  and  convenient,  and  to  supply  the  necessary  wants  of 
those  who  shall  reside  at  them.  They  are  intended,  at  the 
same  time,  to  prove  convenient  and  advantageous  to  the 
different  Indian  tribes  residing  and  hunting  in  their  vicinity, 
as  trading-posts  will  be  established  at  them,  to  the  end, 
that  you  may  be  furnished  with  goods,  in  exchange  for 
your  furs  and  skins,  at  a  reasonable  rate. 

"  You  will  consider,  that  the  principal  part  of  the  now 
proposed  reservations,  were  made  and  ceded  by  the  Indians, 
at  an  early  period,  to  the  French;  the  French,  by  the  treaty 
of  peace  of  1763,  ceded  them  to  the  British,  who,  by  the 
treaty  of  1783,  ceded  all  the  posts  and  possessions  they  then 
held,  or  to  which  they  had  any  claim,  south  of  the  great 
lakes,  to  the  United  States  of  America.  The  treaty  of 
Muskingum,  embraced  almost  all  these  reservations,  and 
has  been  recognised  by  the  representatives  of  all  the  na- 
tions now  present,  during  the  course  of  last  winter,  as  the 
basis  upon  which  this  treaty  should  be  founded. 

"  Younger  brothers !  I  have  now  proposed  to  you,  articles  of 
a  treaty,  calculated  to  ensure  our  future  friendship  and  hap- 
piness; and  which  may  continue  till  time  shall  be  no  more. 
I  present  this  belt,  emblematic  of  the  ten  articles  which 
compose  it,  to  your  uncles,  the  Wyandots."     [A  belt.] 

Tarkee,  chief  of  the  Wyandots,  arose  and  said : 

"Brothers,  the  fifteen  United  States,  listen!  and  you,  my 
nephews,  the  Delawares,  brothers  Ottawas,  Chippeways, 
Pottawattamies,  Shawanees  and  Miamies !  This  is  the  day 
the  Great  Spirit  has  appointed  for  us,  wherein  we  have 
completed  the  good  work  of  peace.  We  have  opened  our 
ears,  and  we  all  understand  well  what  has  just  now  been 
said.  We  have  paid  the  utmost  attention  to  all  your  words, 
in  describing  the  boundary  between  the  United  States,  and 
us  Indians ;  and  the  roads  you  have  made,  which  shall  lead 
through  our  country,  to  the  different  posts  and  reservations 
you  have  mentioned.  We  thank  you  for  your  information  ; 
and  wre  are  persuaded  you  have  acted  with  great  equity 


238  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

and  moderation,  in  dividing  the  country  as  you  have  done ; 
we  are  highly  pleased  with  your  humanity  towards  us. 

"Listen,  you  chiefs  and  warriors  present!  Our  elder 
brother  has  made  proposals  to  us,  which  require  the  great- 
est deliberation  among  us  all.  I  do  now  request  of  you  to 
consult  upon  this  business,  without  delay,  that  we  may  be 
enabled  to  return  an  answer  to  our  brother  to-morrow. 
Make  no  delay  in  deciding.     This  is  all  I  have  to  say." 

The  Little- Turtle,  a  Miami  chief,  arose  and  said: 

"  Listen,  you  chiefs  and  warriors,  to  what  I  am  about  to 
say  to  you !  To  you  I  am  speaking.  We  have  heard  what 
our  elder  brother  has  said  to  us  this  day.  I  expected  to 
have  heard  him  deliver  those  words,  ever  since  we  have 
been  here ;  for  which  reason  I  observed,  that  you  were  pre- 
cipitate, on  your  part.  This  is  a  business  of  the  greatest 
consequence  to  lis  all;  it  is  an  affair  to  which  no  one 
among  us  can  give  an  answer.  Therefore,  I  hope  that  we 
will  take  time  to  consider  the  subject;  that  we  will  unite  in 
opinion,  and  express  it  unanimously.  Perhaps  our  brothers, 
the  Shawanees,  from  Detroit,  may  arrive  in  time  to  give  us 
their  assistance.  You,  chiefs  present,  are  men  of  sense 
and  understanding :  this  occasion  calls  for  your  serious  de- 
liberation ;  and  you,  my  uncles,  the  Wyandots,  and  grand- 
fathers, the  Delawares,  view  our  situation  in  its  true  point 
of  consideration." 

Council  adjourned. 

Tuesday,  28th  July.  In  Council.  Present  as  before. 
Tarkee,  chief  of  the  Wyandots,  arose  and  said: 

"Elder  brother!  You  told  us  yesterday,  to  deliberate  seri- 
ously on  the  subject  of  your  communications  to  us.  We, 
the  Wyandots,  Delawares,  and  Shawanees,  have  not  yet 
formed  our  opinions :  more  time  is  required  to  consider  of 
so  important  a  matter.  To-morrow  morning  we  will  be 
prepared  to  answer  you :  our  minds  will  by  that  time  be 
made  up." 

The  Sun,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  spoke  as  follows : 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  239 

"  Elder  brother!  If  my  old  chiefs  were  living,  I  should  not 
presume  to  speak  in  this  assembly;  but  as  they  are  dead,  I 
now  address  you,  in  the  name  of  the  Pottawattamies ;  as 
Masass  has  spoken  in  the  name  of  the  three  fires,  of  which 
we  are  one:  I  have  to  express  my  concurrence  in  senti- 
ment with  him.  It  is  two  years  since  I  assisted  at  the 
treaty  of  Vincennes.  My  voice,  there,  represented  the 
three  fires.  I  then  said  it  would  require  three  years  to 
accomplish  a  general  peace;  I  am  now  of  a  different 
opinion,  for  I  am  confident  it  will  be  completed  at  this 
meeting. 

"Elder  brother!  I  now  bury  the  hatchet  forever,  and  tell 
you  that  all  the  bad  and  imprudent  actions  which  have 
been  committed,  were  not  done  by  me,  the  Indian. 

"  Elder  brother !  You  now  see  why  I  have  done  wrong. 
This  war-belt  caused  us  to  spill  much  blood,  through  this 
country.  The  Great  Spirit  has,  at  length,  put  a  period  to 
the  influence  of  this  pernicious  belt.  You  must  know,  that 
it  was  presented  to  us  by  the  British;  and  has  involved  us, 
for  four  years  past,  in  misery  and  misfortunes.  I  am  re- 
joiced to  think,  it  can  never  again  lead  us  astray,  even  if  a 
fresh  war  should  break  out,  with  redoubled  fury.  We  have 
already  the  loss  of  too  many  chiefs  and  warriors  to  lament, 
who  fell  a  sacrifice  in  this  destructive  contest. 

"  Elder  brother!  You  have  been  told  that  the  Pottawatta- 
mies are  always  foremost  in  mischief.  I  now  tell  you,  that 
was  not  a  true  representation.  The  Pottawattamie  sits  in 
the  centre;  nothing  takes  its  beginning  from  thence.  It  is 
the  three  people  who  lived  at  the  Miami  villages,  who  as- 
sumed to  themselves  the  privilege  of  going  before.  But 
this  cannot  be  unknown  to  you. 

"  Elder  brother !  I  shall  now  dispose  of  this  belt.  I  live 
too  far  from  the  lakes ;  and  my  arm  is  not  long  enough  to 
throw  it  into  the  centre  of  any  of  them;  neither  have  I 
strength  sufficient  to  tear  up  a  big  tree,  and  bury  it  beneath 
its  root;  but  I  will  put  it  from  me  as  effectually,  by  surren- 


240  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

dering  it  into  your  hands,  as  by  doing  with  it  any  thing 
else.  You  may  burn  it,  if  you  please,  or  transform  it  into 
a  necklace,  for  some  handsome  squaw;  and  thus  change 
its  original  design  and  appearance;  and  prevent  for  ever 
its  future  recognition.  It  has  caused  us  much  misery,  and 
I  am  happy  in  parting  with  it."     [A  war  belt.] 

"  Elder  brother  !  I  have  now  made  you  acquainted  with 
the  determined  resolution  of  the  three  fires,  and  if  any 
other  nation  should  pretend  to  tell  you  that  their  strength 
and  influence  can  hereafter  stir  us  up  to  war,  do  not  be- 
lieve them;  for  I  now  tell  you,  that  we,  the  three  fires,  are 
not  only  immoveable  in  our  determination,  but  being  the 
most  powerful  people,  have  nothing  to  dread  from  their 
compulsion." 

The  New  Corn,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  arose  and  said: 
"  All  you  nations  present,  I  must  tell  you  that  I  am  much 
surprised  that  you  cannot  agree  in  opinion  on  the  good 
work  now  before  you.  You  do  not  act  well ;  you  undo  to- 
day what  you  did  yesterday.  It  would  appear  as  if  you 
were  ashamed  to  come  forward  with  one  voice.  Why  do 
you  hesitate  ?  You  know  good  works  are  always  better 
when  executed  with  decision.  I  now  entreat  you  all,  to 
join  hand  and  heart,  and  finish  this  good  work  with  our 
elder  brother." 

The  Little  Turtle,  a  Miami  chief,  spoke  as  follows : 
"All  you  present  must  know  that  every  kind  of  business, 
especially  such  as  we  are  at  present  engaged  in,  exhibits 
difficulties  which  require  patience  to  remove,  and  consid- 
eration to  adjust.  Your  younger  brothers,  the  Miamies, 
again  light  the  calumet  of  peace,  and  present  it  to  the 
Shawanees  who  have  not  yet  smoked  out  of  it. 

"Elder  brother!  Your  younger  brothers,  the  Miami* )8, 
now  thank  you  for  the  sentiments  you  have  expressed,  and 
for  burying  the  hatchet;  they  offer,  at  the  same  time,  their 
acknowledgements  to  their  elder  brother,  of  the  fifteen 
fires,  for  throwing  his  tomahawk,  with  so  strong  an  arm, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  241 

into  the  great  ocean.  We  are  convinced  of  the  sincerity 
with  which  these  actions  were  performed.  I  do  not  believe 
the  hatchet  was  ever  before  buried  so  deep.  I  fancy  it  has 
always,  heretofore,  been  cast  into  shallow,  running  water, 
which  has  washed  it  up  on  dry  land,  where  some  of  our 
foolish  young  men  have  always  found  it,  and  used  it,  to 
involve  their  people  in  trouble. 

"  Elder  brother  !  I  wish  we  could  all  unite  and  give  our 
elder  brother  at  once  a  final  answer  to  his  propositions.  I 
am  surprised  that  you,  my  uncles,  the  Wyandots,  and  you, 
my  grandfathers,  the  Delawares,  and  you,  Shawanees, 
should  say  you  were  not  ready.  Your  younger  brothers 
expect  that  you  will  call  them  all  together,  and  make  them 
acquainted  with  your  sentiments  first,  as  elder  brothers 
ought  to  do,  and  afterwards  to  listen  to  the  opinion  of  your 
younger  brothers." 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  chief  of  the  Chippeways,  arose 
and  said : 

"  Elder  brother,  listen  to  me !  My  mind  has  long  been 
made  up ;  it  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  consider  upon  w^hat 
I  am  already  resolved  upon :  we  have  been  here  a  long  time, 
and  ought,  without  further  delay,  to  finish  this  good  work. 
We,  the  three  nations,  have  been  long  united  in  opinion ;  we 
fully  agree  to  your  propositions ;  we  want  no  further  private 
counsel.  We  should  lay  aside  trifling;  our  tardy  brothers 
have  got  their  wives  with  them ;  they  are  content  and  easy; 
ours  are  at  home,  and  we  are  anxious  to  be  with  them." 
Council  adjourned. 

Wednesday,  29th  July.     Council  present  as  before. 

Tarkee,  chief  of  the  Wyandots,  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Elder  brother  of  the  fifteen  fires,  listen  to  us !  All  you 
that  are  assembled  here,  brother  Indians,  listen  also.  We 
are  now  come  forward  to  give  you  an  answer  to  what  you 
proposed  to  us,  the  other  day,  as  my  nephews,  the  Dela- 
wares, and  my  younger  brothers,  the  Shawanees,  have 
agreed  upon  what  they  will  say  to  you.  We  request  you, 
16 


242  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

brother,  to  relate  this  answer  to  our  brother  Indians,  after 
I  have  delivered  it  to  you." 

The  following  written  address  was  then  presented : 

"  Greenville,  Head  Quarters,  29th  July,  1795. 

"  Brothers  of  the  Fifteen  United  Fires,  listen  to  the  voice 
of  the  Wyandots,  and  their  confederates  of  Sandusky !  We 
take  the  Delawares,  our  nephews,  and  our  younger  broth- 
ers, the  Shawanees,  by  the  hand,  as  their  sentiments  agree 
with  ours,  and  have  one  heart  and  voice  to  speak.  I  now 
speak,  brothers,  in  the  name  of  the  before  mentioned  tribes, 
in  answer  to  your  proposals,  made  to  us  two  days  ago. 
As  we  have  said  before,  that  you  had  done  the  greatest  jus- 
tice to  us,  we  do  now  again,  acknowledge  it  a  second  time. 

" Brothers,  listen  well!  We  have  only  the  following  ob- 
jections to  make;  you  mentioned  in  one  of  the  articles,  that 
you  would  not  protect  us  from  the  mischief  that  might  take 
place  amongst  ourselves.  Remember  well,  brothers,  the 
speech  you  sent  us,  dated  the  1st  January,  1795.  We  shall 
only  give  part  of  the  contents,  and  these  are  the  words : 

"  'Your  father,  General  Washington,  the  President  of  the 
Fifteen  Great  Fires  of  America,  will  take  you  under  his  pro- 
tection, and  has  ordered  me  to  defend  his  dutiful  children 
from  any  injury  that  may  be  attempted  against  them,  on 
account  of  their  peaceable  disposition  towards  the  United 
States ;  for  which  purpose  he  will  order  a  fort  or  fortifica- 
tion to  be  built  at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids  of  Sandusky,  on 
the  reserved  lands,  as  soon  as  the  season  and  circumstan- 
ces will  permit.' 

"  Brothers !  We  never  expected  that  you  would  change 
your  sentiments  regarding  our  safety,  on  which  depends 
our  future  happiness. 

"  Brothers !  Reconsider  this  beneficial  part  of  the  arti- 
cles— don't  change  your  sentiments — hold  fast  to  General 
Washington's  orders,  as  we  do.  We  shall  never  be  happy 
or  contented,  if  you  do  not  take  us  under  your  powerful 
wings ;  we  are  sensible  that  no  one  dare  pluck  a  feather 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  243 

from  your  body ;  if  they  do,  the  fifteen  speared  arrows  in 
your  claws,  will  display  in  every  direction. 

"  Brothers,  listen!  You  have  requested  of  us  all,  to  give 
you  an  account  of  the  nation  or  nations,  the  true  owners  of 
the  soil  north-west  of  the  Ohio,  of  the  boundaries  you  have 
laid  off  two  days  ago.  We  will  ask  you  a  few  questions. 
Did  you  not,  in  the  last  war  between  you  and  the  British, 
divide  the  country?  He  gave  one  part  to  you, — the  other 
he  reserved  for  himself.  We  are  well  acquainted,  that  you 
are  master  of  the  lands,  and  you  have  now  thought  pro- 
per to  return  a  large  tract  of  the  country  to  us  again. 

"  Brothers  !  We  leave  the  disposal  of  the  country  wholly 
in  your  breast.  Make  out  the  boundaries  that  shall  divide 
the  land  between  our  nations,  as  we,  the  Wyandots,  Dela- 
wares,  and  Shawanees,  wish  to  know  if  we  are  entitled  to 
any  part  of  it.  We  wish  to  inform  you  of  the  impropriety 
of  not  fixing  the  bounds  of  every  nation's  rights ,  for  the 
manner  it  now  lies  in,  would  bring  on  disputes  forever, 
between  the  different  tribes  of  Indians ;  and  we  wish  to  be 
by  ourselves,  that  we  may  be  acquainted  how  far  we  might 
extend  our  claims,  that  no  one  may  intrude  on  us,  nor  we 
on  them. 

"  Brothers!  This  speech  we  deliver  you,  is  the  unanimous 
opinion  of  the  chiefs,  the  Wyandots,  Ottawas,  Delawares, 
and  Six  Nations  of  Sandusky,  and  the  Delawares  and 
Shawanees,  from  the  waters  of  the  Miami  river. 

"  My  nephews,  the  Delawares,  and  my  younger  brothers, 
the  Shawanees,  have  further  added  to  this  speech ;  it  is 
their  wish  from  their  hearts,  that  the  present  proposed  plan 
should  be  left  to  your  consideration,  as  you  had  pity  on  us 
in  settling  the  present  business  in  such  a  manner  as  you 
thought  proper.  You  may  rest  assured  brothers,  that  these 
are  our  sentiments. 

J.  WILLIAMS, 

Agent  and  Commissioner  for  the  Chiefs 

and  Warriors  of  Sandusky." 


244  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

The  Little  Turtle,  a  Miami  chief,  arose  and  spoke  as 
follows  : 

"Elder  brother!  and  all  you  present!  I  am  going  to  say 
a  few  words,  in  the  name  of  the  Pottawattamies,  Weas, 
and  Kickapoos.  It  is  well  known  to  you  all,  that  people 
are  appointed  on  those  occasions,  to  speak  the  sentiments 
of  others;  therefore  am  I  appointed  for  those  three  nations. 

"  Elder  brotlier !  You  told  your  younger  brothers,  when 
we  first  assembled,  that  peace  was  your  object.  You 
swore  your  interpreters  before  us,  to  the  faithful  discharge 
of  their  duty,  and  told  them  the  Great  Spirit  would  punish 
them,  did  they  not  perform  it.  You  told  us  it  was  not  you, 
but  the  President  of  the  Fifteen  Fires  of  the  United  States, 
who  spoke  to  us ;  that  whatever  he  should  say,  should  be 
firm  and  lasting;  that  it  was  impossible  he  should  say  what 
was  not  true.  Rest  assured,  that  your  younger  brothers, 
the  Miamies,  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  Pottawattamies,  Shaw- 
anees,  Weas,  Kickapoos,  Piankeshaws,  and  Kaskaskias, 
are  well  pleased  with  your  words,  and  are  persuaded  of 
their  sincerity.  You  have  told  us  to  consider  of  the  boun- 
daries you  showed  us ;  your  younger  brothers  have  done 
so,  and  now  proceed  to  give  you  their  answer.  [A  white 
string.] 

"  Elder  brotlier /  Your  younger  brothers  do  not  wish  to 
hide  their  sentiments  from  you.  I  wish  them  to  be  the 
same  with  those  of  the  Wyandots  [and  Delawares.  You 
have  told  us,  that  most  of  the  reservations  you  proposed 
to  us,  belonged  to  our  fathers,  the  French  and  British. 
Permit  your  younger  brothers  to  make  a  few  observations 
on  this  subject. 

"  Elder  brother !  We  wish  you  to  listen  with  attention  to 
our  words.  You  have  told  your  younger  brothers,  that  the 
British  imposed  falsehoods  on  us,  when  they  said,  the  Uni- 
ted States  wished  to  take  our  lands  from  us,  and  that  the 
United  States  had  no  such  design.  You  pointed  out  to  us 
the  boundary  line,  which  crossed  a  little  below  Loramics' 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  245 

store,  and  struck  Fort  Recovery,  and  ran  thence  to  the 
Ohio  river,  opposite  the  mouth  of  Kentucky  river. 

"Elder  brother!  You  have  told  us  to  speak  our  mind* 
freely,  and  we  now  do  it.  This  line  takes  in  the  greater 
and  the  best  parts  of  your  brothers'  hunting  ground;  there- 
fore, your  younger  brothers  are  of  opinion,  you  take  too 
much  of  their  lands  away,  and  confine  the  hunting  ground* 
of  our  young  men  within  limits  too  contracted.  Your  bro- 
thers, the  Miamies,  the  proprietors  of  those  lands,  and  all 
your  younger  brethren  present,  wish  you  to  run  the  line,  as 
you  mentioned,  to  Fort  Recovery,  and  to  continue  it  along 
the  road  from  thence  to  Fort  Hamilton,  on  the  Great  Mi- 
ami river.  This  is  what  your  brothers  request  you  to  do ; 
and  you  may  rest  assured  of  the  free  navigation  of  that 
river,  from  thence  to  its  mouth,  forever. 

"Brother!  Here  is  the  road  we  wish  to  be  the  boundary 
between  us.  What  lies  to  the  east,  we  wish  to  be  yours; 
that  to  the  west,  we  would  desire  to  be  ours."  [Presenting 
a  road  belt.] 

"Elder  brother!  In  speaking  of  the  reservations,  you  say, 
they  are  designed  for  the  same  purpose  as  those,  for  which 
our  fathers,  the  French  and  English,  occupied  them.  Your 
younger  brothers  now  wish  to  make  some  observations  on 
them. 

"Elder  brother!  Listen  to  me,  with  attention.  You  told 
us,  you  discovered,  on  the  Great  Miami,  traces  of  an  old 
fort.  It  was  not  a  French  fort,  brother ;  it  was  a  fort  built 
by  me.  You  perceived  another  at  Loramies' ;  'tis  true  a 
Frenchman  once  lived  there,  for  a  year  or  two.  The  Mi- 
ami villages  were  occupied  as  you  remarked;  but  it  was 
unknown  to  your  younger  brothers,  until  you  told  them, 
that  we  had  sold  land  there  to  the  French  or  English.  I 
was  much  surprised  to  hear  you  say,  it  was  my  forefathers 
had  set  the  example  to  the  other  Indians,  in  selling  their 
lands.  I  will  inform  you  in  what  manner  the  French  and 
English  occupied  those  places. 


246  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Elder  Brother !  These  people  were  seen  by  our  fore- 
fathers first  at  Detroit;  afterwards  we  saw  them  at  the  Mi- 
ami village — that  glorious  gate  which  your  younger  bro- 
thers had  the  happiness  to  own,  and  through  which  all  the 
good  words  of  our  chiefs  had  to  pass,  from  the  north  to  the 
south,  and  from  the  east  to  the  west.  Brothers,  these 
people  never  told  us,  they  wished  to  purchase  our  lands 
from  us. 

"Elder  Brother!  I  now  give  you  the  true  sentiments  of 
your  younger  brothers,  the  Miamies,  with  respect  to  the  re- 
servation at  the  Miami  villages.  We  thank  you  for  kindly 
contracting  the  limits  you  at  first  proposed.  We  wish  you 
to  take  this  six  miles  square,  on  the  side  of  the  river  where 
your  fort  now  stands,  as  your  younger  brothers  wish  to  in- 
habit that  beloved  spot  again.  You  shall  cut  hay  for  your 
cattle  wherever  you  please,  and  you  shall  never  require 
in  vain  the  assistance  of  your  younger  brothers,  at  that 
place. 

"Elder  Brother!  The  next  place  you  pointed  to,  was  the 
Little  River,  and  said  you  wanted  two  miles  square  at  that 
place.  This  is  a  request  that  our  fathers,  the  French  or 
British  never  made  us — it  was  always  ours.  This  carrying 
place  has  heretofore  proved,  in  a  great  degree,  the  subsist- 
ence of  your  younger  brothers.  That  place  has  brought  to 
us  in  the  course  of  one  day,  the  amount  of  one  hundred  dol- 
lars. Let  us  both  own  this  place,  and  enjoy  in  common  the 
advantages  it  affords.  You  told  us  at  Chicago,  the  French 
possessed  a  fort;  we  have  never  heard  of  it.  We  thank 
you  for  the  trade  you  promised  to  open  in  our  country ;  and 
permit  us  to  remark,  that  we  wish  our  former  traders  may 
be  continued,  and  mixed  with  yours.     [A  belt.] 

"  Elder  Brother!  On  the  subject  of  hostages,  I  ha  <e  only 
to  observe,  that  I  trust  all  my  brothers  present  are  of  my 
opinion,  with  regard  to  peace  and  our  future  happiness.  1 
expect  to  be  with  you  every  day,  when  you  settle  on  your 
reservations,  and  it  will  be  impossible  for  me  or  my  people 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  247 

to  withhold  from  you  a  single  prisoner,  therefore  we  don't 
know  why  any  of  us  should  remain  here.  These  are  the 
sentiments  of  your  younger  brothers  present  on  these  par- 
ticulars."    [A  white  string.] 

Asimethe,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  arose  and  spoke  as  fol- 
lows : 

"Elder  Brother!  You  have  heard  the  voice  of  your 
younger  brothers  present.  I  have  nothing  to  add  to  what 
has  been  said.  Where  could  I  find  a  contrary  opinion?  I 
have  only  to  hope  that  we  may  all  experience  the  truth  of 
what  you  have  told  us  in  the  name  of  General  Washington, 
who  sent  you.  All  our  treaties  hitherto,  have  failed;  this, 
I  am  confident,  will  be  lasting.  These  words  come  from 
the  three  fires,  and  we  hope  the  Great  Spirit  may  witness 
our  sincerity."  [A  white  string.] 
Council  adjourned. 

Thursday,   30th  July.     In  Council.     Present  as  before. 
Asimethe  thus  resumed  his  address : 

"Elder  Brother!  What  I  am  about  to  say,  is  the  voice  of 
all   present.     You  know  the  Great  Spirit  witnesses  our 
words— I  am  afraid  to  tell   an  untruth.     I  have  nothing  to 
add  to  what  has  been  said;  it  meets  the  full  approbation 
of  all  your  younger  brothers.  You  know  we  have  all  buried 
the  hatchet,  together  with  our  bad  actions.     Why,  there- 
fore, do  you  wish  to  detain} hostages  from  among  us?    You 
may  depend  upon  our  sincerity.    We  cannot  but  be  sincere, 
as  your  forts  will  be  planted  thick  among  us.     Although  an 
Indian,  I  respect  the  words  of  a  good  man|;  and  when  I 
pledge  my  faith,  I  do  not  deviate  from  my  engagements. 
Your  people  with  us  will  undoubtedly  be  restored  as  soon 
as  possible :  I  cannot  fix  any  precise  period  for  their  de- 
livery, for  perhaps  I  could  not  exactly  fulfil  my  promises, 
and  I  should  be  sorry  to  give  you  cause  to  doubt  my  ve- 
racity. 

The  Shawanees,  Miamies,  and  Delawares,  who  lived  at 
the  gate,  and  who  caused  all  our  misfortunes,  have  wisely 


248  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

buried  the  hatchet  forever  :  they  wish  to  return  to  their  for- 
mer situation,  and  enjoy  again  their  favorite  abode. 

"  Elder  Brother !  Do  not  view  my  freedom  with  displea- 
sure."    [A  white  string.] 

Kee-a-hah,  a  Kickapoo  chief,  arose  and  said: 

"  I  am  sent  by  my  nation  to  hear  what  the  assembled  na- 
tions should  say  at  this  treaty;  together  with  the  words  of 
our  elder  brother.     I  shall  now  speak  a  few  words  through 
the  Little  Turtle."     [Presents  a  pipe  to  smoke.] 

The  Little  Turtle  said— 

"Elder  Brother!  The  United  States,  and  you  elder  broth- 
ers present,  look  at  this  calumet — you  see  it  is  white.  It  is 
an  instrument  given  to  us  Indians  by  the  Great  Spirit,  to 
assist  in  communicating  our  sentiments  to  each  other. 

"Elder  brother!  I  return  you  thanks  for  the  good  words 
you  sent  among  us ;  in  consequence  of  which  we  are  here 
this  day.  We,  the  Kickapoos,  and  Kaskaskias,  are  happy 
in  perceiving  your  humanity  towards  us.  We  see,  with 
great  pleasure,  all  our  elder  brothers  now  take  you  by  the 
hand;  and  we  sincerely  hope  your  words  to  each  other 
may  never  be  violated.  We  present  this  calumet  as  a 
token  of  our  lasting  friendship  towards  you,  and  of  our 
anxious  desire  that  this  good  work  may  last  for  ever."  [A 
pipe  delivered.] 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  chief  of  the  Chippeways,  arose 
and  spoke  as  follows : 

"Elder  brother,  listen  to  what  I  now  say !  Your  younger 
brothers,  that  is,  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  and  Pottawat- 
tamies,  have  told  you  that  they  were  but  one  people,  and 
had  but  one  voice.  They  have  said  the  truth,  and  what  I 
now  say  is  in  the  name  of  the  three  fires.  You  have  asked 
of  us,  the  island  of  Michilimackinac,  and  its  dependencies, 
on  the  main,  where  the  fort  formerly  stood ;  they  are  ceded 
to  you,  for  ever,  with  the  utmost  cheerfulness.  You  have 
also  asked  a  piece  of  ground,  at  the  entrance  of  the  straits, 
to  cut  your  wood  on,  and  for  other  necessary  purposes; 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  249 

this  is  also  granted  to  you;  and  I  further  add  to  it,  the 
Isle  de  Bois  Blanc,  as  an  instance  of  our  sincere  disposition 
to  serve  and  accommodate  you. 

You  know,  brother,  when  the  French  formerly  possessed 
this  country,  we  were  but  one  people,  and  had  but  one  fire 
between  us;  we  now  entertain  the  hope  of  enjoying  the 
same  happy  relation  with  you,  the  United  States.  Your 
brothers  present,  of  the  three  fires,  are  gratified  in  seeing 
and  hearing  you;  those  who  are  at  home  will  not  expe- 
rience that  pleasure  until  you  come  and  live  among  us: 
you  will  then  learn  our  title  to  that  land;  you  will  then  be 
convinced  of  my  sincerity,  and  of  the  friendship  and 
strength  of  our  nations. 

This,  elder  brother,  is  all  I  have  to  say  at  present.  We 
all  know  that  the  good  work  of  peace  is  accomplished :  I 
only  address  these  few  words  to  you  that  all  nations  pres- 
ent may  again  hear  the  sentiments  of  the  three  fires,  and 
understand  them  perfectly."     [A  blue  and  white  string.] 

The  Little  Beaver,  a  Wea  chief,  arose  and  said : 

"Elder  brother!  You  already  know  what  I  am  about  to 
say.  I  have  got  a  cold;  I  cannot  speak  well  at  present; 
my  brother,  the  Little  Turtle,  will  speak  for  me." 

The  Little  Turtle— 

"  Elder  brother!  Here  are  papers  which  have  been  given 
to  me  by  General  Washington,  the  Great  Chief  of  the  Uni- 
ted States.  He  told  me  they  should  protect  us  in  the  pos- 
session of  our  lands,  and  that  no  white  person  should  inter- 
rupt us  in  the  enjoyment  of  our  hunting  grounds,  or  be  per- 
mitted to  purchase  any  of  our  towns,  or  lands,  from  us ; 
that  he  would  place  traders  among  us  who  would  deal 
fairly.     I  wish  you  to  examine  these  papers. 

"Elder  brother!  You  have  asked  for  a  reservation  at  the 
Ouiatanon;  I  hope  you  will  put  a  trader  there,  on  the  spot 
formerly  occupied  by  one.  We  would  wish  captain  Prior 
to  be  our  trader.  I  can't  give  you  any  lands  there,  brother; 
I  will  lend  you  some  as  long  as  you  want  it. 


250  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"Elder  brother!  You  have  told  us  of  a  place  possessed  by 
the  French,  called  Musquiton.  We  have  lived  at  our  village 
a  long  time,  and  it  is  very  surprising  that  we  should  never 
know  anything  about  it.  The  French  lived  at  Vincennes, 
where  they  were  permitted  to  settle  by  my  forefathers,  who 
told  them  they  should  have  a  small  quantity  of  land  for  the 
cattle,  &c.  on  the  east,  but  none  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Wabash."     [A  white  string.] 

Masass,  a  Chippeway  chief,  arose  and  said — 

"All  you  my  brothers  present !  When  the  chiefs  of  my 
village  sent  me  hither  to  hear  your  proceedings  in  council, 
they  told  me  I  could  not  see  the  extent  of  the  American 
fires ;  that  they  believed  their  elder  brother  had  called  them 
together  in  pity  to  them,  their  women  and  children,  and  they 
enjoined  the  three  fires  to  speak  with  one  voice,  and  do 
their  utmost  to  forward  the  good  work ;  saying,  that  they 
had  seen  several  treaties,  heretofore  made  with  the  United 
States,  which  the  Indians  had  always  violated,  by  taking  up 
the  hatchet. 

"Elder  brother!  I  have  listened  to  all  your  words,  and  to 
those  of  my  brothers.  It  would  be  very  wrong  in  me  to 
raise  objections  to  what  has  been  done,  as  you  have  ex- 
plained to  us  your  treaty  with  Britain. 

"  Elder  brother!  You  say,  at  the  Fort  of  Detroit,  you  in- 
tend to  take  a  piece  of  land  six  miles  deep,  from  the  river 
Racine  to  Lake  St.  Clair.  I  now  ask  you  what  is  to  become 
of  our  brothers,  the  French,  who  live  on  this  land?  We 
look  on  them  as  our  brothers  and  friends,  who  treated  us 
well,  when  abused  by  the  British.  We  wish  to  know  your 
sentiments  on  this  subject.  We  think,  brother,  you  could 
find  land  enough  between  the  rivers  Raisin  and  Rouge. 
We  have  no  objection  to  your  reservation  at  the  foot  of  the 
Rapids.  We  have  no  objection  to  any  other  proposition 
you  have  made  ;  and  we  sincerely  wish  we  could  now  take 
you  among  us,  because  the  British,  on  our  return,  will  re- 
new their  old  songs. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  251 

"Elder  brother!  My  children  must  have  suffered  since 
I  left  home ;  perhaps  I  myself  may  be  made  unhappy,  on 
my  return  to  them;  for  the  British  may  probably  say,  why 
don't  you  seek  relief  from  your  new  friends?  This  makes 
me  uneasy,  and  urges  me  to  entreat  you  to  come  immedi- 
ately, and  live  nearer  to  us.  You  might  then  assist  us, 
and  it  would  be  more  convenient  for  the  surrender  of  our 
prisoners.  I  hope  you  pity  my  situation.  When  I  returned 
from  the  treaty  of  Muskingum,  McKee  threatened  to  kill 
me;  I  have  not  now  less  cause  to  fear  him,  as  he  endea- 
vored to  prevent  my  coming  hither. 

"  Elder  brother  !  You  asked  who  were  the  true  owners  of 
the  lands  now  ceded  to  the  United  States.  In  answer,  I 
tell  you,  that  if  any  nations  should  call  themselves  the 
owners  of  it,  they  would  be  guilty  of  a  falsehood;  our 
claim  to  it  is  equal ;  our  elder  brother  has  conquered  it. 

"Brothers!  Have  done  trifling.  Let  us  conclude  this 
great  work;  let  us  sign  our  names  to  the  treaty  now  pro- 
posed, and  finish  our  business. 

"Elder  brother!  If  I  can  escape  the  snares  of  McKee,  and 
his  bad  birds,  I  shall  ascend  as  high  as  the  Falls  of  St.  Ma- 
ry's, and  proclaim  the  good  tidings  to  all  your  distant  bro- 
thers in  that  quarter."     [A  belt.] 

The  General  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Younger  brothers,  all  of  you,  listen  with  attention !  I 
shall  now  reply  to  what  was  said  yesterday  by  the  Wyan- 
dots.  I  will  then  answer  the  observations  of  the  Little 
Turtle,  made  in  behalf  of  the  Miamies  and  Wabash  tribes. 

"  Younger  brothers,  the  Wyandots,  Delawares  and  Shaw- 
anees !  I  am  pleased  to  hear  you  say  with  one  voice,  for 
the  second  time,  that  I  have  done  the  greatest  justice  to 
you,  in  dividing  the  lands  of"  the  United  States  from  those  of 
the  Indian  nations,  by  the  boundary  line  which  I  have  pro- 
posed. You  request  me  to  fix  the  boundaries  that  shall  di- 
vide the  lands  between  the  respective  tribes  of  Indians  now 
present. 


252  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Younger  brothers  !  A  moment's  reflection  will  show  you 
the  impropriety,  as  well  as  the  impossibility  of  my  acting 
in  this  business.  You  Indians  best  know  your  respective 
boundaries. 

"  I  particularly  recommend  to  all  you  nations  present,  to 
continue  friendly  and  just  to  each  other;  let  no  nation  or 
nations,  invade,  molest  or  disturb,  any  other  nation  or 
nations  in  the  hunting  grounds  they  have  heretofore  been 
accustomed  to  live  and  hunt  upon,  within  the  boundary 
which  shall  be  now  agreed  on.  And,  above  all,  I  enjoin 
that  no  injury  be  offered  to  any  nation  or  nations,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  part  any  or  either  of  them  may  have  pur- 
sued, to  establish  a  permanent  and  happy  peace  with  the 
United  States  of  America. 

"  Younger  brothers,  the  Wyandots  and  other  Indians  of 
Sandusky,  make  your  hearts  and  minds  easy.  Be  assured, 
that  as  soon  as  circumstances  will  permit,  a  fort  shall  be 
established  on  the  reserved  lands,  near  the  entrance  of 
Sandusky  Lake,  which  will  always  afford  you  protection 
against  the  common  enemy,  should  any  such  presume  to 
disturb  our  peace  and  mutual  friendship. 

"  Younger  brothers,  the  Miamies !  I  have  listened  to  you 
with  attention,  and  have  heard  your  observations  upon  the 
general  boundary  line  proposed  by  me,  as  well  as  upon  the 
proposed  reservations.  If  my  ears  did  not  deceive  me,  I 
have  heard  all  the  other  nations  give  their  assent  to  the 
general  boundary  line,  and  to  the  reservations  generally; 
I  therefore  address  you,  the  Miamies :  You  say  that  the 
general  boundary  line,  as  proposed  by  me,  will  take  away 
some  of  your  best  hunting  grounds,  and  you  propose  to 
alter  it,  and  run  it  from  Fort  Recovery,  through  the  centre 
of  this  place,  and  along  the  road  to  the  Miami  river,  oppo- 
site Fort  Hamilton. 

"  Younger  brothers!  This  would  be  a  very  crooked,  as 
well  as  a  very  difficult  line  to  follow,  because  there  are 
several  roads  between  this  and  Fort  Hamilton,  some  of 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.    ,  253 

them  several  miles  apart,  which  might  certainly  be  produc- 
tive of  unpleasant  mistakes  and  differences.  That  which 
I  propose  will  be  free  from  all  difficulty  and  uncertainty. 
You  all  know  Fort  Recovery,  as  well  as  the  mouth  of  Ken- 
tucky river.  A  straight  line  drawn  from  one  to  the  other, 
will  never  vary ;  they  are  two  points  which  will  ever  be 
remembered,  not  only  by  all  present,  but  by  our  children's 
children,  to  the  end  of  time.  Nor  will  this  line  prevent 
your  hunters,  or  young  men  in  the  smallest  degree  from 
pursuing  all  the  advantages  which  the  chace  affords,  be- 
cause, by  the  seventh  article,  the  United  States  of  America 
grant  liberty  to  all  the  Indian  tribes,  to  hunt  within  the 
territory  ceded  to  the  United  States,  without  hindrance  or 
molestation,  so  long  as  they  demean  themselves  peaceably, 
and  offer  no  injury  to  the  people  of  the  United  States. 

"I  find  there  is  some  objection  to  the  reservation  at  Fort 
Wayne.  The  Little  Turtle  observes,  he  never  heard  of 
any  cessions  made  at  that  place,  to  the  French.  I  have 
traced  the  lines  of  two  forts  at  that  point;  one  stood  near 
the  junction  of  the  St.  Joseph's  and  the  St.  Mary's;  and 
the  other  not  far  removed,  on  the  St.  Mary's ;  and  it  is  ever 
an  established  rule,  among  Europeans,  to  reserve  as  much 
ground  around  their  forts  as  their  cannon  can  command ; 
— this  is  a  rule,  as  well  known  as  any  other  fact. 

"  Objection  has  also  been  made  respecting  the  portage 
between  Fort  Wayne  and  Little  river;  and  the  reasons  pro- 
duced are,  that  the  road  has  been  to  the  Miamies  a  source 
of  wealth — that  it  has  heretofore  produced  them  one  hun- 
dred dollars  per  day.  It  may  be  so ;  but  let  us  enquire  who 
in  fact  paid  this  heavy  contribution.  It  is  true,  the  traders 
bore  it  in  the  first  instance,  but  they  laid  it  on  their  goods, 
and  the  Indians  of  the  Wabash  really  and  finally  paid  it; 
therefore,  it  is  the  Little  Beaver — the  Soldier — the  Sun,  and 
their  tribes,  who  have  actually  been  so  highly  taxed.  The 
United  States  will  always  be  their  own  carriers,  to,  and 
from,  their  different  posts.     Why  should  the  United  States 


254  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

pay  the  large  sum  of  eight  thousand  dollars,  annually,  if 
they  were  not  to  enjoy  the  privilege  of  open  roads  to,  and 
from  their  reservations?  This  sum  of  money,  the  United 
States  agree  to  pay  for  this,  and  other  considerations;  and 
the  share  which  the  Miamies  will  receive  of  this  annuity, 
shall  be  one  thousand  dollars. 

"  I  will  then  enquire,  of  all  the  nations  present,  whether 
the  United  States  are  not  acting  the  part  of  a  tender  father, 
to  them  and  their  children,  in  thus  providing  for  them ;  not 
only  at  present,  but  for  ever? 

"  The  Miamies  shall  be  at  liberty,  as  usual,  to  employ 
themselves  for  private  traders  whenever  their  assistance 
may  be  required,  and  those  people  who  have  lived  at  that 
glorious  gate  (the  Miami  villages)  may  now  rekindle  their 
fires  at  that  favorite  spot,  and  henceforth,  as  in  their  hap- 
piest days,  be  at  full  liberty  to  receive  from,  and  send  to, 
all  quarters,  the  speeches  of  their  chiefs  as  usual — and  here 
is  the  road  the  Miamies  will  remember."     [A  road  belt.] 

"Now,  all  ye  chiefs  and  warriors,  of  every  nation  pres- 
ent, open  your  ears,  that  you  may  clearly  hear  the  articles 
of  treaty,  now  in  my  hand,  again  read,  and  a  second  time 
explained  to  you,  that  we  may  proceed  to  have  them  en- 
grossed on  parchment;  which  may  preserve  them  forever." 

[The  articles  of  treaty  were  here  a  second  time   read, 
and  explained  by  the  General,  who  observed  upon] 
The  article  respecting  hostages : 

"I  did  not  expect  any  objections  to  this  particular;  for  I 
see  no  reason  why  you  should  hesitate  at  leaving  ten  of 
your  people  with  me,  until  the  return  of  our  people,  from 
among  jrou.  The  promise  of  a  mutual  exchange  of  prison- 
ers made  last  winter,  when  we  met  at  this  place,  you  have 
not  performed  on  your  part :  I  have  kept  none  of  your  flesh 
and  blood;  nor  would  General  Washington,  the  Great 
Chief  of  the  United  States,  suffer  me  so  to  do.  The  period 
will  be  short,  and  those  who  remain  shall  be  kindly  treated." 
On  the  Ouiatanon  reservation: 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY. 


255 


"The  Little  Beaver  has  asked  for  Captain  Prior, to  reside 
as  a  trader  at  Ouiatanon;  he  shall  reside  at  that  place. 
But  Captain  Prior  is  a  warrior,  not  a  trader;  he  shall  have 
a  few  warriors  with  him  to  protect  the  trade  and  the  Indi- 
ans in  that  quarter." 
On  the  reservation  at  Detroit : 

Masass  has  asked,  what  will  become  of  the  French? 
The  United  States  consider  the  French  and  themselves  as 
one  people ;  and  it  is  partly  for  them,  and  their  accommo- 
dation, that  this  reservation  is  made,  whenever  they  become 
citizens  thereof,  as  well  as  for  the  people  of  the  Fifteen 
Fires." 
On  the  gift  of  the  Isle  de  Bois  Blanc : 

"  In  addition  to  the  cessions  which  the  three  fires  have 
made,  with  such  cheerfulness,  of  the  reservations  in  their 
country,  Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish  has,  in  their  name,  made  a 
voluntary  gift  to  the  United  States,  of  the  Isle  de  Bois  Blanc, 
in  Lake  Michigan.  The  Fifteen  Fires  accept  of  this  unask- 
ed-for  grant  from  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  and  Pottawatta- 
mies,  according  to  their  intentions ;  and  will  always  view 
it  as  an  unequivocal  mark  of  their  sincere  friendship. 

"  The  Little  Turtle  yesterday  expressed  a  wish  that  some 
of  their  former  traders  might  be  continued  among  them,  as 
a  part  of  the  number  to  be  licensed  by  the  United  States. 
This  is  very  fair  and  reasonable,  and  a  certain  number  will 
be  licensed  accordingly,  when  properly  recommended  as 
good  and  honest  men. 

"Brothers?  All  you  nations  now  present,  listen!  You 
have  now  had,  for  a  second  time,  the  proposed  articles  of 
treaty  read  and  explained  to  you.  It  is  now  time  for  the 
negotiation  to  draw  to  a  conclusion.  I  shall,  therefore,  ask 
each  nation,  individually,  if  they  approve  of,  and  are  pre- 
pared to  sign,  those  articles,  in  their  present  form,  that  they 
may  be  immediately  engrossed  for  that  purpose.  I  shall 
begin  with  the  Chippeways. 


ditto, 

"Yes." 

ditto, 

"Yes." 

ditto, 

"Yes." 

ditto, 

"Yes." 

ditto, 

"Yes." 

ditto, 

"Yes." 

ditto, 

"Yes." 

ditto, 

"Yes." 

56  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"  You  Chippeways,  do  you  approve  of  these  articles  of 
treaty,  and  are  you  prepared  to  sign  them?" 

[A  unanimous  answer,]  "  Yes." 

"  You,  Ottawas  do  you  agree  ?" 

"  You,  Pottawattamies  ?" 

"  You,  Wyandots,  do  you  agree  ?" 

"You,  Delawares?" 

"You,  Shawanees?" 

"You,  Miamies,  do  you  agree?" 

"You,  Weas?" 

"  And  you,  Kickapoos,  do  you  agree  ?"  ditto, 

"The  treaty  shall  be  engrossed;  and  as  it  will  require 
two  or  three  days  to  do  it  properly,  on  parchment,  we  will 
now  part,  to  meet  on  the  2d  of  August.  In  the  interim,  we 
will  eat,  drink,  and  rejoice,  and  thank  the  Great  Spirit  for 
the  happy  stage  this  good  work  has  arrived  at." 

Council  adjourned. 

July  31st.  The  Red  Pole,  with  eighty-eight  Shawanees, 
and  Tey-yagh-taw,  with  seven  Wyandots,  nine  of  the  Six 
Nations,  and  ten  Delawares,  arrived  from  the  vicinity  of 
Detroit,  and  were  received. 

August  2d.  In  Council.  Present  as  before,  with  the  ad- 
dition of  the  Shawanees,  Wyandots,  &c,  who  arrived  on 
the  31st  ultimo.  The  Red  Pole,  a  Shawanee  chief,  arose 
and  spoke  as  follows : 

"  I  am  very  happy  to  see  you  all,  my  brothers,  here  as- 
sembled. I  am  come  late,  but  I  come  with  a  good  heart. 
I  am  well  pleased  to  hear  of  the  good  work  you  have 
agreed  upon,  with  our  elder  brother,  the  Fifteen  Fires,  and 
thank  you  for  the  pity  you  have  shown  for  our  helpless 
women  and  children,  whom  we  have  left  behind." 

The  General  arose  and  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Younger  Brothers!  I  have  received  a  letter  from  your 
ancient  friends  and  brothers,  the  people  called  Quakers, 
with  a  message  to  all  the  nations  here  assembled.     The 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  257 

Quakers  are  a  people,  whom  I  much  love  and  esteem,  for 
their  goodness  of  heart,  and  sincere  love  of  peace,  with  all 
nations.  Listen  then  to  their  voice,  and  let  it  sink  deep 
into  your  hearts." 

[Here  the  General  read  the  address  of  the  people  called 
Quakers,  and  the  invoice  of  their  present.] 

"Their  present,  you  perceive,  is  small ;  but  being  design- 
ed with  the  benevolent  view  of  promoting  the  peace  and 
happiness  of  mankind,  it  becomes  of  important  value. 
They  wish  it  to  be  regarded  merely  as  a  token  of  their  re- 
gard for  you,  and  a  testimony  of  their  brotherly  affection, 
and  kind  remembrance  of  you. 

"  Younger  brothers!  The  articles  of  treaty  are  not  yet 
completely  engrossed ;  they  will  be  ready  by  eight  o'clock 
to-morrow  morning,  when  we  will  again  meet  here,  read 
the  treaty  once  more,  and  proceed  to  the  act  of  mutually 
signing,  and  exchanging  it.  The  Shawanees  and  Wyan- 
dots,  who  arrived  the  day  before  yesterday,  will  then  hear 
what  we  have  all  agreed  upon,  and  be  equally  convinced 
with  all  the  others,  of  the  liberality  of  the  articles." 

Blue  Jacket,  a  Shawanee  chief,  arose  and  spoke  as 
follows : 

"  Elder  brother,  and  you  my  brothers  present !  You  see 
me  now  present  myself,  as  a  war-chief,  to  lay  down  that 
commission,  and  place  myself  in  the  rear  of  my  village 
chiefs,  who,  for  the  future,  will  command  me.  Remember, 
brothers,  you  have  all  buried  your  war-hatchets;  your 
brothers,  the  Shawanees,  now  do  the  same  good  act.  We 
must  think  of  war  no  more. 

"  Elder  brother !  You  now  see  that  all  the  chiefs  and 
warriors  around  you,  have  joined  in  the  good  work  of 
peace,  which  is  now  accomplished.  We  now  request  you 
to  inform  our  elder  brother,  General  Washington,  of  it,  and 
of  the  cheerful  unanimity  which  has  marked  their  deter- 
minations. We  wish  you  to  enquire  of  him  if  it  would  be 
agreeable  that  two  chiefs  from  each  nation  should  pay  him 
17 


258  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

a  visit,  and  take  him  by  the  hand;  for  your  younger 
brothers  have  a  strong  desire  to  see  that  great  man,  and 
to  enjoy  the  pleasure  of  conversing  with  him."  [A  blue 
string.] 

The  General  thus  replied : 

"  Brothers,  the  Shawanecs,  and  all  you  other  nations !  I  am 
confident  the  heart  of  the  great  chief,  General  Washington, 
will  be  rejoiced  when  he  hears  that  you  have  unanimously 
joined  in  the  good  work  of  peace.  The  instrument  we 
will  sign  to-morrow  shall  be  an  everlasting  record  of  the 
good  action — one  part  of  which  I  will  immediately  trans- 
mit to  him.  I  will,  with  pleasure,  make  the  enquiries  you 
desire,  and  communicate  the  answer  to  you  whenever  I 
receive  it." 

Council  adjourned. 

August  3d.     In  Council.     Present  as  before. 

The  General  rose  and  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Younger  brothers!  When  this  council  fire  was  first 
kindled,  my  commissions  and  authority  for  holding  this 
treaty  were  read,  and  explained  to  all  then  present;  but, 
as  several  chiefs  had  not  at  that  time  arrived,  I  shall  now 
read  them  a  second  time,  for  the  perfect  satisfaction 
of  all." 

[The  General  here  again  exhibited  and  explained  his 
powers.] 

"  That  I  have  strictly  performed  my  duty,  in  fulfilling 
those  instructions,  and  that  they  were  manifestly  calculated 
to  establish  the  peace  and  happiness  of  all  the  Indian 
nations  now  present,  will  appear  by  the  engrossed  articles 
of  treaty,  unanimously  agreed  to,  and  now  before  us. 
They  shall  now  be  read  a  third  time,  that  all  may  be  per- 
fectly acquainted  with  them. — Therefore  listen ! 

[The  engrossed  articles  were  here  read;  the  signing 
commenced  and  finished;  and  the  General  thus  pro- 
ceeded:] 

"  Younger  brothers!    Having  completed  the  signing  of  this 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  259 

treaty,  one  part  of  it  shall  be  delivered  to  the  Wyandots, 
who  will  preserve  it  as  a  sacred  pledge  of  the  establish- 
ment of  our  future  friendship ;  the  other,  or  counterpart,  I 
will  send  to  the  great  chief,  General  Washington.  In  addi- 
tion, one  copy  on  paper  shall  be  delivered  to  each  nation, 
for  their  frequent  and  particular  information.  We  will 
now  proceed  to  apportion  the  goods  designed  to  be  given 
to  you,  and  I  hope  to  be  prepared  for  their  delivery  in  a 
day  or  two.  Some  assistance  must  be  afforded  to  the  Chip- 
peways,  and  other  remote  tribes,  to  facilitate  the  transpor- 
tation of  their  proportions.  We  will,  for  the  present,  retire, 
and  we  will  have  a  little  drink  this  evening." 

Mashipinashiwish,  chief  of  the  Chippeways,  arose  and 
said: 

"  Elder  brother !  I  now  see  that  all  is  settled.  It  affords 
us  a  great  deal  of  pleasure.  I  hope  you  feel  equally  grati- 
fied. I  repeat  our  entire  satisfaction,  that  all  present  may 
know  it.  We,  the  three  fires,  have  never  done  you  any 
harm.  With  the  same  good  heart  I  met  you  here,  I  will 
depart  and  return  home.  You  will  find  the  truth  of  these 
words,  when  you  come  and  live  among  us.  You  must  not 
believe  ill  of  me. 

"  Elder  brother  !  I  hope  you  will  listen  with  attention  to 
my  words,  and  have  pity  on  me.  I  have  a  request  to  make 
of  you.  You  know  I  have  come  a  great  distance  to  assist 
in  this  good  work,  and  as  it  is  now  happily  completed,  I 
hope  you  will  deliver  to  us  our  friend,  whom  you  sent  from 
hence  into  confinement.  We  would  be  grieved  to  leave 
him  in  durance  behind  us,  for  he  has  been  friendly  to  us. 
This  is  the  request  of  your  brothers,  the  three  fires." 

Council  adjourned. 

August  7th.  In  Council.  Present  as  before.  The  Gen- 
eral arose,  and  spoke  as  follows  : 

"Brothers,  all  nations  now  present !  You  have  all  smoked 
out  of  this  calumet,  when  we  first  opened  council  at  this 
place,  except  the  Shawanees.     I  will,  therefore,  smoke  with 


260  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

the  Shawanees,  and  with  some  of  the  Wyandots  who  ar- 
rived late. 

"Listen,  all  you  sachems,  chiefs,  and  warriors!  Lift  up 
your  eyes,  and  behold  these  instruments  of  writing,  to 
which  the  Wyandots,  Delawares,  Shawanees,  Ottawas, 
Chippeways,  Pottawattamie s,  Miamies,  Eel  Rivers,  Weas, 
Kickapoos,  Piankeshaws,  and  Kaskaskias,  have  set  their 
hands  and  seals,  that  they  may  be  handed  down  to  your 
children's  children,  as  a  memorial  of  the  happy  peace  thereby 
established.  When  your  posterity  shall  hereafter  view  these 
records,  they  will  be  informed,  that  you  were  the  great 
people  that  accomplished  this  blessed  work,  to  insure  to 
them,  peace  and  happiness  forever.  One  of  these  I  shall 
transmit  to  General  Washington;  the  other,  I  shall  deposite, 
agreeably  to  your  own  desires,  with  your  uncles,  the  Wy- 
andots. A  true  copy,  on  paper,  shall  now  be  given  to  each 
nation.  This  large  belt,  and  this  seal,  will  accompany  the 
original  instrument,  and  will  declare  its  sacred  and  impor- 
tant value. 

"  The  next  business,  will  be  the  distribution  of  the  goods 
and  presents  promised  by  treaty.  To-morrow,  the  Wyan- 
dots shall  receive  their  proportion ;  the  other  nations  will 
be  sent  for  in  order,  as  they  signed,  as  soon  as  we  are  ready 
to  deliver  them.  It  will  make  no  difference  to  any,  who  is 
first  served,  or  who  last;  all  shall  have  their  due  proportion. 
I  have  only  to  recommend  a  just  and  equal  distribution 
among  your  respective  nations. 

"  Independent  of  this  general  delivery,  and  as  a  reward 
for  the  good  disposition  to  peace,  of  some  chiefs  and  na- 
tions, early  evinced,  I  shall  make  some  further  presents, 
which  must  be  considered  as  private  property,  to  those  who 
shall  receive  them,  and  as  testimonies  of  particular  regard. 
In  return  for  the  generous  and  unasked  for  present  of  the 
Chippeways,  of  the  Isle  de  Bois  Blanc,  the  Fifteen  Fires 
will  make  them  an  acknowledgement  to  show  that  they 
will  never  be  out-done  in  kindness. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  261 

"I  have  to  exhort  you  to  take  every  measure  to  restrain 
your  young  men  from  the  bad  practice  of  stealing  hor.-<  s 
from  those  who  are  their  friends.  Some  Frenchmen,  who 
accompanied  you  to  this  place,  have  complained  to  me  of 
having  had  their  horses  stolen  since  their  arrival.  This  is 
ungrateful  and  disgraceful. 

"  Be  all  now  attentive  !  This  letter  in  my  hand,  informs 
me,  that  some  very  bad  Indians  indeed,  regardless  of  the 
good  work  we  have  been  engaged  in,  have  barbarously 
surprised  and  murdered  an  innocent  family,  who  thought 
themselves  secure  from  harm,  whilst  negotiations  for  peace 
engaged  your  attention.  This  grieves  me  very  much.  By 
an  article  of  the  agreement  entered  into  last  winter,  we 
were  mutually  to  inform  each  other  of  any  harm  in- 
tended, which  should  come  to  our  knowledge,  and  do  our 
utmost  to  prevent  it.  And  it  is  expressly  stipulated  in  this 
treaty,  that  similar  conduct  shall  be  pursued  by  both  par- 
ties;— that  for  injuries  done,  no  private  or  personal  re- 
taliation shall  take  place,  but  complaint  shall  be  made  by 
the  party  injured,  to  the  other,  &c. 

"  I  do,  accordingly,  at  this  time,  complain  to  you  of  the 
bad  conduct  of  those  bad  people,  and  desire  you,  who  live 
nearest  to  them,  to  exert  your  powers  to  restrain  their  prac- 
tices, and  correct  their  lives.  I  fear  if  they  are  permitted 
to  continue  uncontrolled,  much  mischief  will  ensue.  They 
are  a  small  lawless  banditti,  who  insult  your  authority,  at 
the  same  time  they  injure  the  United  States  by  their  savage 
and  inhuman  practices.  Our  people,  roused  and  provoked 
by  their  depredations  and  cruelties,  will  follow  them  into 
their  country,  to  punish  them  as  they  merit ;  and  should 
they,  in  their  pursuit,  fall  in  with  any  of  you  or  your  people 
who  are  our  sincere  friends,  they  might  not  be  able  to  dis- 
tinguish one  from  the  other,  and  would  probably  wreak 
their  vengeance  on  their  innocent  brothers,  and  hurt  them, 
when  they  meant  to  chastise  those  guilty  aggressors  only. 

Tarkee,  chief  of  the  Wyandots,  arose  and  spoke  as  fol- 
lows : 


262  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Brothers,  listen,  and  you  also,  brothers  of  the  different 
nations  present.  The  Great  Spirit  above,  has  appointed 
this  day  for  us  to  complete  all  the  good  work,  in  which  we 
have  been  engaged.  You  remember,  that  some  time  ago, 
our  brother,  the  American,  rose  up  and  thanked  the  Great 
Spirit  above,  for  conducting  the  good  work  so  far  as  it  then 
was  ;  and  he  desired  of  us  to  know  whether  we  would  ac- 
knowledge him,  the  Fifteen  United  States, to  be  our  father; 
but  we  have  not  yet  returned  him  an  answer.  Now,  this 
day  the  good  work  is  completed.  I  inform  you  all,  brother 
Indians,  that  we  do  now,  and  will  henceforth,  acknowledge 
the  Fifteen  UnitedjStates  of  America,  to  be  our  father,  and 
you  will  all  for  the  future,  look  upon  them  as  such — you 
must  call  them  brothers  no  more.  The  Great  Spirit  has 
crowned  them  with  success  in  all  their  undertakings. 

"  Father!  You  see  we  all  now  acknowledge  you  to  be 
our  father.  I  take  you  by  the  hand,  which  I  offer  as  a 
pledge  of  our  sincerity,  and  of  our  happiness,  in  becoming 
your  children. 

"Father!  Listen  to  your  children  here  assembled;  be 
strong  now,  and  take  care  of  all  your  little  ones.  See  what 
a  number  you  have  suddenly  acquired.  Be  careful  of  them 
and  do  not  suffer  them  to  be  imposed  upon.  Don't  show 
favor  to  one  to  the  injury  of  any.  An  impartial  father, 
equally  regards  all  his  children ;  as  well  those  who  are  or- 
dinary, as  those  who  are  more  handsome ;  therefore,  should 
any  of  your  children  come  to  you  crying  and  in  distress, 
have  pity  on  them  and  relieve  their  wants. 

"  Now,  all  my  brothers  present,  you  see  that  we  have 
acknowledged  and  called  on  the  United  States,  as  our  fa- 
ther. Be  strong,  brothers,  and  obedient  to  our  father;  ever 
listen  to  him  when  he  speaks  to  you,  and  follow  his  advice. 
I  now  deliver  this  wampum,  in  presence  of  you  all,  as  a 
token  of  our  being  now,  the  children  of  the  Fifteen  Fires." 
[A  large  string,  blue  and  white.] 

The  General  rose  and  said — 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  263 

"Listen!  all  you  nations,  to  what  your  uncle,  the  Wyan- 
dot, has  said.  [Tarkee's  speech  was  here  interpreted  to 
each  nation.] 

"Listen!  all  you  nations  present.  I  have  hitherto  ad- 
dressed you  as  brothers;  I  now  adopt  you  all,  in  the  name 
of  the  President  and  Fifteen  Great  Fires  of  America,  &< 
their  children,  and  you  are  so  accordingly.  The  medal.- 
which  I  shall  have  the  honor  to  deliver  you,  you  will  con- 
sider as  presented  by  the  hands  of  your  father,  the  Fifteen 
Fires  of  America.  These  you  will  hand  down  to  your 
children's  children,  in  commemoration  of  this  day — a  day 
in  which  the  United  States  of  America,  gives  peace  to  you, 
and  all  your  nations,  and  receives  you  and  them  under  the 
protecting  wings  of  her  eagle." 

Council  adjourned. 

August  8th.     In  Council.     Present  as  before. 

The  Sun,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  arose  and  said : 

"  Father!  I  now  speak  to  acquaint  you,  and  all  present, 
that  I  am  perfectly  satisfied  with  all  that  has  been  done  in 
this  council.  You  have  told  us  to  bring  in  our  prisoners, 
without  delay.  I  have  not  one  in  my  village — I  never  took 
any.  You  further  told  us,  if  any  of  your  people  injured  us 
you  would  punish  them,  and  enjoined  on  us  a  similar  con- 
duct as  it  respected  our  offenders. 

"Father!  I  have  not  the  same  authority  over  my  people 
that  you  exercise  over  yours.  They  live  dispersed,  and  it  is 
difficult  to  reach  them  on  all  occasions.  As  you  have  now 
become  our  father,  we  are  no  longer  objects  of  pity;  as 
your  children,  we  shall  be  happy,  whilst  you  continue  to 
protect  us.  When  the  British  adopted  us  as  children,  they 
made  false  promises,  and  left  us  to  the  mercy  of  the  traders, 
who  took  advantage  of  and  much  abused  our  ignorance 
and  weakness.  You  have  promised  to  send  traders  among 
us  by  whom  we  will  not  be  abused ;  and  we  have  promised 
to  protect  their  lives  and  property.  We  are  happy,  father, 
and  thank  you  for  your  kindness  to  your  children.     I  now 


264  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ask  you  to  send  a  trader  to  my  village,  which  is  a  day's 
walk  below  the  Wea  towns,  on  the  Wabash.  You  said  that 
you  would  send  one  of  your  officers,  to  command  at  those 
towns.  We  would  wish  you  to  send  Captain  Ouiatanon, 
(Prior,)  and  should  any  meditated  mischief  come  to  my 
knowledge  I  will  immediately  acquaint  him  of  it,  agreeably 
to  our  compact.  All  your  children  present  have  the  arti- 
cles of  the  treaty  fully  and  indelibly  impressed  on  their 
hearts,  and  should  bad  birds  attempt  to  misconstrue  or  per- 
vert them,  we  promise,  sincerely,  not  to  listen  to  their  de- 
signing, artful  songs. 

"Father!  We,  the  Pottawattamies  present,  are  in  three 
classes :  one  from  the  river  Huron,  one  from  St.  Joseph's, 
and  that  to  which  I  belong,  from  the  Wabash;  and  as  you 
intend  to  give  the  goods  designed  for  us,  in  bulk,  to  that 
nation,  I  am  afraid  the  division  amongst  ourselves  will  be 
attended  with  difficulty  and  discontent.  I  pray  you,  father, 
to  make  the  division  among  us,  and  thus  preserve  propor- 
tion and  harmony."     [A  belt.] 

The  New  Corn,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  spoke  as  follows : 

"My  friend,  when  I  first  came  here,  I  took  you  by  the 
hand.  You  welcomed  me,  and  asked  me  for  my  great  war 
chiefs.  I  told  you  they  were  killed,  and  that  none  remain- 
ed but  me,  who  have  the  vanity  to  think  myself  a  brave 
man  and  a  great  warrior.  The  Great  Spirit  has  made  me 
a  great  chief,  and  endowed  me  with  great  powers.  The 
heavens  and  earth  are  my  heart,  the  rising  sun  my  mouth, 
and,  thus  favored,  I  propagate  my  own  species !"  [This  is 
the  Nestor  of  the  wilderness,  possessed  of  all  the  garrulity 
of  age.]  "I  know  the  people  who  have  made  and  violated 
former  treaties.  I  am  too  honorable  and  too  brave  a  man 
to  be  guilty  of  such  conduct.  I  love  and  fear  the  Great 
Spirit.     He  now  hears  what  I  say.     I  dare  not  tell  a  lie. 

"Now,  my  friend,  the  Great  Wind,  do  not  deceive  us  in 
the  manner  that  the  French,  the  British,  and  the  Spaniards 
have  heretofore  done.     The  English  have  abused  us  much; 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  2G5 

they  have  made  us  promises  which  they  never  fulfilled; 
they  have  proved  to  us  how  little  they  have  ever  had  our 
happiness  at  heart;  and  we  have  severely  suffered,  for 
placing  our  dependence  on  so  faithless  a  people.  Be  you 
strong,  and  preserve  your  word  inviolate;  and  reward  those 
Frenchmen  who  have  come  so  great  a  distance  to  assist 
us.  My  friend:  I  am  old,  but  I  shall  never  die;  I  shall 
always  live  in  my  children,  and  children's  children."  [A 
string.] 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  chief  of  the  Chippeways,  thu3 
spoke : 

"Father!  The  good  work  being  now  completed,  we  are 
left  without  a  subject  to  employ  our  conversation.  You 
see  your  children,  the  Ottawas,  Chippeways,  and  Pottawat- 
tamies,  around  you.  Those  at  home  will  rejoice,  when  we 
inform  them,  that,  for  the  future,  they  will  enjoy  the  pro- 
tection of  a  new  father.  Our  happiness  is  great,  in  being 
permitted  to  address  you,  by  that  endearing  appellation. 
Father,  since  we  have  been  here,  some  mischief  has  been 
done.  We  are  entirely  ignorant  of  the  perpetrators.  It 
grieves  us  much,  and  excites  our  anger  and  indignation. 
Time  will  discover  to  you,  and  to  us,  those  wicked  dis- 
turbers, who  richly  merit  punishment.  I  have  to  request 
you  to  license  a  trader  to  reside  with  your  children,  at 
Ki-ka-na-ma-sung,  where  we  shall  pass  the  ensuing  win- 
ter. I  have  never  been  guilty  of  stealing  horses ;  nor  shall 
I  now  commence  the  practice.  But  as  I  am  an  old  man,  I 
would  ask  you  for  one  to  carry  me  home." 

Wille-baw-kee-lund,  a  Delaware  chief,  spoke  as  follows : 

"Father!  Listen  to  a  few  words  from  the  Delawares. 
This  is  the  speech  you  gave  us,  when  you  first  came  into 
this  country;  and  when  we  first  met  together  in  council. 
In  this,  you  told  us,  we  should  live  in  peace  and  friendship 
with  each  other,  and  join  our  hands  firmly  together.  It 
seems  they  were  badly  bound;  for  the  ties  were  soon 
broken.     We  know  not,  exactly  how,  or  when,  they  were 


266  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

destroyed.  We  will  now  renew  them,  in  so  strong  a  man- 
ner, that  they  will  last  forever,  and  bury  in  oblivion  all 
past  misfortunes.  Be  strong  in  this  good  work,  and  it  will 
never  fail.  This  belt  was  presented  to  us,  from  brothers ;  and 
our  king  now  shows  it  to  you,  that  you  may  recognise  it." 
Okia,  a  Pottawattamie  chief,  arose  and  spoke  as  follows : 
"Father!  I  come  from  the  River  Huron,  near  Detroit. 
My  fathers  have  long  possessed  that  country.  The  other 
Pottawattamies  present,  live  on  the  St.  Joseph's,  and  in 
that  direction.  All  my  old  chiefs  are  dead;  you  there- 
fore see  young  chiefs  only,  from  my  towns,  who  are  un- 
accustomed to  speak  in  council.  You  told  us,  you  would 
deliver  the  presents  in  bulk  to  the  Pottawattamie  nation. 
In  this  case,  I  am  afraid  my  people  will  not  get  a  due  pro- 
portion, and  I  am  too  proud  to  complain  to  you,  should  they 
be  unfairly  distributed;  therefore,  as  I  live  detached  from 
the  others,  and  intend  to  return  home  with  the  Chippeways, 
by  the  way  of  Fort  Defiance,  I  beg  my  father  would  let  me 
have  my  proportion  separately;  for  we  have  many  young 
women  and  children  at  home,  to  whom  I  shall  be  very 
happy  to  deliver  the  presents  of  their  father.  I  wish  much 
to  carry  with  me  a  copy  of  the  treaty,  to  show  my  people. 
Living  so  far  from  the  rest  of  my  name,  I  can  derive  no 
advantage  from  the  one  you  have  given  to  our  nation  gene- 
rally; and  I  should  be  ashamed,  and  mortified,  to  return 
without  one.  I  would  request  a  trader  for  my  village,  and 
would  wish  for  Mr.  La  Chambre,  with  whom  we  are  long 
acquainted."     [A  belt.] 

Te-ta-boksh-ke,  king  of  the  Delawares,  spoke  as  follows: 
"Father!  You  have  in  your  prison  a  man  (Newman)  who 
came  in  to  us  about  a  year  ago,  and  proved  the  preserva- 
tion of  many  of  our  women  and  children,  by  the  informa- 
tion he  gave  us  :  for  this  we  cannot  help  feeling  grateful. 
Now,  your  children,  the  Delawares,  all  beg  of  you  to  spare 
the  life  of  this  man,  as  he  has  been  instrumental  in  saving 
many  of  us  from  destruction.     We  hope,  father,  you  will 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  267 

grant  this  first  request  of  your  children,  the  Delawares." 
[A  string.] 

The  General  arose  and  spoke  as  follows: 
i:My  children,  the  Pottawattamie s!  I  wish  you  to  endeavor 
to  make  among  yourselves  an  amicable,  and  fair  division 
of  the  goods  intended  for  you.     It  would  be  a  very  difficult 
task  for  me  to  perform  with  justice.     You  are  acquainted 
with  your  own  people  and  their  numbers.     I  am  not  well 
enough  informed  on  this  head  to  make  a  true  apportion- 
ment.    I  wish  all  the  other  nations  to  act  in  a  similar  man- 
ner, and  to  make  a  distribution  to  the  satisfaction  of  their 
respective  people.    I  wish  each  nation  to  appoint  two  confi- 
dential people  from  among  themselves,  to  receive  the  goods, 
and  to  give  receipts  to  the  store-keeper,  who  will  thereby 
convince  me  of  his  having  justly  delivered  them." 
Council  adjourned. 

August  8th,  afternoon.  The  medals,  silver  ornaments, 
&c.  were  delivered.  No  material  or  other  than  complimen- 
tary conversation  took  place. 

August  10th.  In  Council.  Present  as  before. 
The  Red  Pole,  a  Shawanee  chief,  spoke  as  follows : 
"  You,  my  uncles,  the  Wyandots ;  my  grandfathers  the 
Delawares,  and  all  you  nations  present;  you  see,  we  are 
now  here  from  all  parts  of  this  great  island.  You  happily 
accomplished  the  good  work  before  we  the  Shawanees  ar- 
rived :  I  thank  you  all  for  it.  I  now  present  to  your  view  the 
wampum  given  to  me  by  our  elder  brother,  now  become  our 
father.  He  gave  it  to  us  from  his  heart,  and  I  hope  you 
will,  for  the  future,  view  him  as  our  true  father.  We  must, 
for  the  future,  live  in  harmony  with  him,  and  one  another. 
The  Great  Spirit  gave  us  this  land  in  common ;  he  has  not 
given  the  right  to  any  one  nation  to  say  to  another,  this 
land  is  not  yours,  it  belongs  to  me. 

"  Father!  I  have  heard  every  thing  which  has  been  here 
transacted.  Peace  is  firmly  established.  It  affords  me  sat- 
isfaction and  happiness  that  the  hatchet  is  cast  away  for- 


268  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ever.  I  have  reason  to  believe  that  the  mischief  which 
has  been  lately  done,  has  been  committed  by  a  small  party 
of  Shawanees,  who  have  been  in  the  woods  a  long  time 
hunting.  It  grieves  us  much,  that  while  we  are  here,  ac- 
complishing the  good  work  of  peace,  some  of  our  own 
people  are  yet  deaf  to  our  advice.  And  to  convince  you, 
that  we  will  never  permit  such  practices,  I  now  offer  to 
leave  with  you,  my  aged  father,  as  a  hostage,  and  proceed 
immediately,  myself,  to  call  home  those  people,  and  take 
measures  to  prevent  their  future  misconduct.  I  have  just 
returned  from  an  absence  of  two  years,  to  the  southward, 
and  in  that  period,  my  young  men,  uncontrolled  by  their 
other  chiefs,  have  fallen  into  bad  practices ; — but  they  shall 
have  an  immediate  end. 

"All  my  brothers  present!  As  the  peace  is  now  entirely 
completed,  and  as  our  father,  of  the  Fifteen  Fires,  has  adop- 
ted us,  as  his  children,  and  called  us  by  that  name ;  I  now 
tell  him,  in  presence  of  you  all,  that  we,  the  Shawanees,  do 
acknowledge  the  Fifteen  Fires  as  our  father;  and  that 
henceforth,  we  will  always  regard  him  as  such."  [A  white 
string.] 

"You,  my  uncles,  and  grandfather,  have  settled  with  our 
father,  the  boundary  line,  in  a  manner  which  meets  my  en- 
tire approbation.  I  am  perfectly  satisfied  with  it ;  and  it 
appears  you  had  our  common  interest  in  view. 

"Father!  As  all  the  nations  are  now  present,  they  can 
never  hereafter  deny  their  own  work,  nor  say,  that  other 
people  acted  for  them,  without  authority.  I,  therefore, 
recommend  to  them  to  fulfil,  strictly,  their  agreements,  and 
adhere  religiously  to  their  engagements."     [A  belt.] 

The  General  arose  and  spoke  as  follows : 

"  Children,  all  you  nations,  listen!  By  the  seventh  prticle  of 
this  treaty,  all  the  lands  now  ceded  to  the  United  States, 
are  free  for  all  the  tribes  now  present,  to  hunt  upon,  so 
long  as  they  continue  to  be  peaceable,  and  do  no  injury 
to  the  people  thereof.     It  is,  therefore,  the  common  interest 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  269 

of  you  all,  to  prevent  any  mischief  being  done  upon  those 
hunting  grounds.  Those  people  who  have  committed  the 
late  outrage,  on  our  peaceable  inhabitants,  had  been  hunt- 
ing on  those  grounds,  and,  after  finishing  their  hunt,  pro- 
ceeded to  the  commission  of  the  bad  actions  of  which  I 
have  complained.  These  practices,  for  the  reasons  I  have 
already  given  you,  must  have  an  immediate  end. 

"The  Red  Pole  has  behaved  like  a  candid,  honest  man, 
in  acknowledging  the  errors  of  his  people,  and  in  promis- 
ing to  restrain  them  immediately.  He  has  done  more;  he 
has  offered  to  leave  his  own  father,  as  a  hostage,  until  he 
can  inform  me  of  his  having  called  them  home.  But  I  will 
not  separate  him  from  his  old  father;  I  will  depend  upon 
his  honor,  for  the  performance  of  his  promise."  [A  white 
string  to  the  Red  Pole.] 

"  All,  you  my  children,  listen  to  me !  The  great  business 
of  peace  so  long  and  ardently  wished  for  by  your  great  and 
good  father,  General  Washington,  and  the  Fifteen  Fires, 
and  I  am  sure,  by  every  good  man  among  you,  being  now 
accomplished;  nothing  remains  but  to  give  you  a  few 
words  of  advice  from  a  father,  anxious  for  the  peace  and 
happiness  of  his  children.  Let  me  earnestly  exhort  you, 
to  restrain  your  young  people  from  injuring,  in  any  degree, 
the  people  of  the  United  States.  Impress  upon  their  minds 
the  spirit  and  meaning  of  the  treaty  now  before  us.  Con- 
vince them  how  much  their  future  welfare  will  depend 
upon  their  faithful  and  strict  observance  of  it.  Restore  to 
me,  as  soon  as  possible,  all  my  flesh  and  blood  which  may 
be  among  you,  without  distinction  or  exception;  and 
receive  now  from  my  hands,  the  ten  hostages  stipulated  by 
the  second  article  to  be  left  with  me,  as  a  security  for  their 
delivery.  This  unequivocal  proof  of  the  confidence  that  I 
place  in  your  honor,  and  in  the  solemn  promises  you  have 
made  me,  must  satisfy  you  of  my  full  persuasion  of  your 
sincerity.  Send  those  ten  young  men  to  collect  your  pris- 
oners ;  let  them  bring  them  to  me,  and  they  shall  be  well 


270  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

rewarded  for  their  trouble.  I  have  here  a  particular 
account  of  the  number  remaining  among  you,  and  shall 
know  when  they  are  all  restored. 

"I  now  fervently  pray  to  the  Great  Spirit,  that  the  peace 
now  established  may  be  permanent ;  and  that  it  may  hold 
us  together  in  the  bonds  of  friendship,  until  time  shall  be 
no  more.  I  also  pray,  that  the  Great  Spirit  above,  may 
enlighten  your  minds,  and  open  your  eyes  to  your  true 
happiness,  that  your  children  may  learn  to  cultivate  the 
earth,  and  enjoy  the  fruits  of  peace  and  industry."  [A 
white  string.] 

"  As  it  is  probable,  my  children,  that  we  shall  not  soon 
meet  again  in  public  council,  I  take  this  opportunity  of 
bidding  you  all  an  affectionate  farewell;  and  of  wishing 
you  a  safe  and  happy  return  to  your  respective  homes  and 
families."     [A  string.] 

Bu-kon-ge-he-las,  a  Delaware  chief,  spoke  as  follows : 

"Fatlier!  Your  children  all  well  understand  the  sense 
of  the  treaty  which  is  now  concluded.  We  experience, 
daily,  proofs  of  your  increasing  kindness.  I  hope  we  may 
all  have  sense  enough  to  enjoy  our  dawning  happiness. 
Many  of  your  people  are  yet  among  us ;  I  trust  they  will 
be  immediately  restored.  Last  winter  our  king  came  for- 
ward to  you,  with  two,  and  when  he  returned  with  your 
speech  to  us,  we  immediately  prepared  to  come  forward 
with  the  remainder.  All  who  know  me,  know  me  to  be  a 
man  and  a  warrior;  and  I  now  declare,  that  I  will,  for  the 
future,  be  as  strong  and  steady  a  friend  to  the  United  States, 
as  I  have  heretofore  been  an  active  enemy.  We  have  our 
bad  young  man  among  us,  who,  a  few  days  ago,  stole  three 
of  your  horses.  Two  of  them  shall  this  day  be  returned  to 
you;  and  I  hope  I  shall  be  able  to  prevent  that  yoiu.g  man 
from  doing  any  more  mischief,  to  our  father,  the  Fifteen 
Fires." 

Mash-i-pi-nash-i-wish,  chief  of  the  ChippewayS,  spoke  as 
follows : 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  271 

"  Father!  I  have  heard,  and  understood,  all  that  you  have 
said.  I  am  perfectly  satisfied  with  every  part  of  it;  my 
heart  will  never  change.  No  prisoners  remain  in  our 
hands,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Michilimackinac.  Those 
two  Frenchmen  present  (Messieurs  Sans  Crainte  and 
Pepin,)  can  witness  to  the  truth  of  this   assertion." 

Masass,  a  Chippeway  chief,  rose  and  spoke  as  follows : 

"  I  have  heard  all  the  proceedings,  relating  to  this  treaty. 
I  express  my  perfect  satisfaction  at  its  happy  conclusion. 
When  I  relate  at  home,  the  important  event,  my  people 
will  stretch  out  their  arms  towards  you;  and  when  I  shall 
have  informed  them  that  you  have  promised  to  cherish 
them  as  your  children,  they  will  rejoice  at  having  acquired 
a  new,  and  so  good  a  father." 

Council  adjourned,  sine  die. 

It  appears  from  a  "  return  of  the  numbers  of  the  different 
nations  of  Indians  present  at,  and  parties  to,  the  treaty  of 
Greenville,"  that  there  were  one  hundred  and  eighty  Wy- 
andots,  three  hundred  and  eighty-one  Delawares,  one  hun- 
dred and  forty-three  Shawanees,  forty-five  Ottawas,  forty- 
six  Chippeways,  two  hundred  and  forty  Pottawattamie s, 
seventy-three  Miamies  and  Eel  Rivers,  twelve  We  as  and 
Piankeshaws,  and  ten  Kickapoos  and  Kaskaskias, — making 
a  total  of  eleven  hundred  and  thirty. 

Immediately   after  the    signing  of  the   treaty,  General 
Wayne  sent  the  following  proclamation 
"  To  the  Cherokees  now  settled  on  the  head  ivaters  of  the  Scioto. 

"Whereas,  I,  Anthony  Wayne,  Major  General,  command- 
ing the  army  of  the  United  States,  and  sole  Commissioner 
for  settling  a  permanent  peace  with  all  the  Indian  tribes 
north-west  of  the  river  Ohio,  having  accomplished  that 
great  and  good  work,  and  having  this  day  signed  and  ex- 
changed articles  of  a  permanent  peace,  with  the  Chip- 
peways, Ottawas,  Pottawattamie s,  Wyandots,  Delawares, 
Shawanees,  Miamies,  Eel  River,  Weas,  and  Kickapoo  na- 
tions of  Indians  : 


272  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

"  Do,  hereby,  once  more  invite  you,  the  Cherokees,  resid- 
ing on  the  waters  of  the  Scioto,  to  come  forward,  immedi- 
ately, to  this  place,  and  enter  into  similar  articles  of  peace ; 
for  which  purpose,  I  now  send  Captain  Longhair,  a  princi- 
pal Cherokee  chief,  to  conduct  you  to  head  quarters,  where 
you  shall  be  received  in  friendship,  and  treated  with  kind- 
ness and  hospitality.  Captain  Longhair  will  give  you  the 
particulars  respecting  this  treaty,  as  also  those  of  a  treaty 
of  peace  lately  made  between  the  United  States  and  the 
Cherokee  nation,  so  that  you  now  stand  alone  and  unpro- 
tected, unless  you  comply  with  this  last  invitation. 

Given  at  Head-quarters,  Greenville,  3d  August,  1795. 

ANTHONY  WAYNE." 

In  consequence  of  the  above  message,  some  of  this  party 
of  Cherokees  returned  to  Greenville,  with  Captain  Longhair, 
and  afterwards  accompanied  him  home,  to  their  nation. 
The  remainder  promised  to  hunt  peaceably  on  the  Scioto, 
until  their  corn  was  fit  to  gather,  when  they  would  quit  this 
side  of  the  Ohio  forever,  and  return  to  their  own  country. 

At  a  private  conference  on  the  12th  August,  with  the 
Miamies,  Eel  River,  and  Kickapoo  Indians,  the  Little  Tur- 
tle, in  the  name  of  the  others,  observed,  that  as  they  in- 
tended soon  to  depart,  and  return  to  their  respective  homes, 
he  took  this  opportunity  of  repeating  to  the  General,  that 
he,  himself,  and  the  Indians  with  him,  were  perfectly  ac- 
quainted with  every  article  of  the  treaty,  that  no  part  of  it 
had  escaped  their  serious  and  anxious  deliberation ;  that,  in 
the  early  stage  of  the  negotiation,  he  had  not  comprehended 
the  moderation  and  liberality  with  which  he  was  now  con- 
vinced, it  is  dictated ;  that  to  this  cause,  and  to  a  duty  which 
he  conceived  he  owed  his  country,  must  be  attributed  the 
opposition  he  exhibited  on  sundry  occasions ;  that  he  was 
persuaded  his  father  would  not  think  unkindly  of  him  for  it, 
for  he  had  heard  him  with  much  pleasure,  approve  of  l In* 
freedom  with  which  he  delivered  his  sentiments;  that  be 
was  a  man  who  spoke  as  he  thought,  and  a  man  of  sin- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  273 

cerity ;  and  that  he  embraced  this  last  occasion,  to  declare, 
that  as  he  was  fully  convinced  that  the  treaty  was  wisely 
and  benevolently  calculated  to  promote  the  mutual  interest 
and  insure  the  permanent  happiness  of  the  Indians,  and 
their  father  the  Americans,  so  it  was  his  determined  resolu- 
tion, to  adhere,  religiously,  to  its  stipulations. 

He  asked  for  traders  to  reside  at  their  different  villages, 
and  mentioned  the  names  of  some,  who,  from  the  confi- 
dence they  had  in  their  integrity,  they  wished  might  be 
licensed  and  continued  by  the  United  States,  as  traders 
among  them;  he  hoped,  (for  the  Weas  particularly,)  that  a 
fort  would  be  immediately  established  at  Ouiatanon,  and 
promised  every  assistance  they  could  afford,  to  the  estab- 
lishment; that  he,  himself,  would  reside  near  Fort  Wayne, 
where  daily  experience  should  convince  his  father  of  his 
sincere  friendship ;  and  that,  as  he  intended  to  rekindle  the 
Grand  Council  Fire  at  that  place,  by  means  of  which,  the 
different  nations  might  communicate  with  each  other  as 
usual,  he  requested  his  father  to  give  orders  to  the  com- 
mandant of  Fort  Wayne,  to  inform  him  from  time  to  time, 
of  any  measures  which  the  Great  Council  of  the  Fifteen 
Fires  might  adopt,  in  which  the  interest  of  their  children 
should  be  concerned;  and  he  asked,  that  Mr.  Wells  might 
be  placed  there  as  a  resident  interpreter,  as  he  possessed 
their  confidence,  as  fully  as  he  did  that  of  their  father. 

On  the  9th  September,  a  party  of  Shawanees,  consisting 
of  between  sixty  and  seventy  warriors,  who  had  hitherto 
proved  refractory  and  hostile,  arrived  at  Greenville,  with 
four  prisoners, — three  of  whom  they  captured  on  the  13th 
July,  1795,  in  Randolph  county,  Virginia.  On  the  11th,  the 
General  gave  them  audience,  when  Puck-se-kaw  (or  Jump- 
er,) one  of  their  chiefs,  spoke  as  follows : 

"My father!    I  have  been  in  the  woods  a  long  time;  I 
was    not    acquainted    with    the    good   works  which  were 
transacting  at  this  place,  by  you  and  all  our  great  chiefs. 
"  Last  spring,  when  we  were  hunting  peaceably,  our  camp 
18 


274  BURNET'S  NOTES. 

on  the  Scioto  was  robbed;  we  are  very  poor,  and  the  mis- 
chief that  has  since  been  done,  was  in  retaliation  for  the 
injuries  we  then  sustained. 

"  As  soon  as  I  received  this  belt,  which  you  sent  me  by 
Blue  Jacket,  one  of  our  great  chiefs,  and  as  soon  as  I  was 
informed  by  him  that  the  good  work  of  peace  was  finished, 
I  arose  to  come  and  see  you,  and  brought  with  me  these 
four  prisoners.  I  now  surrender  them  up  to  you,  my  father, 
and  promise,  sincerely,  that  we  will  do  no  more  mischief. 

"  I  hope,  that  for  the  future,  we  shall  be  permitted  to  live 
and  hunt,  in  peace  and  quietness.  We  were  poor  ignorant 
children,  astray  in  the  woods,  who  knew  not  that  our  na- 
tion, and  all  the  other  tribes  of  Indians,  had  come  in  and 
made  peace  with  you.  I  thank  the  Great  Spirit  for  at  length 
opening  our  eyes. 

"Father?  We  beg  you  will  forgive,  and  receive  your  re- 
pentant children.  These  people,  whom  I  now  deliver  to 
you,  must  plead  our  forgiveness,  and  vouch  for  our  sincere 
intention  to  alter  our  conduct  for  the  future."  [A  white 
string.] 

At  the  close  of  this  speech,  the  Indians  retired  from 
Greenville,  and  returned  to  their  respective  homes. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

Surrender  of  the  North-western  posts  by  the  British,  in  1796. — Made  to  Gen- 
eral Wayne,  appointed  for  that  purpose. — Death  of  General  Wayne. — Sketch 
of  his  life.— Detroit.— Its  Commerce  and  Society.— Their  hospitality.— Cele- 
bration of  the  king's  birth-day  at  Sandwich. — General  invitation  to  the 
Americans  at  Detroit,  including  the  General  Court  and  the  Bar. — Note. — 
Gen.  Wilkinson's  charges  against  Gen.  Wayne. — Unfounded. — Contrast  be- 
tween the  two  men. — Their  controversies. — Their  effect  on  the  army. — 
The  officers  take  sides. — Two  parties  formed. — Note. — Canadian  French 
at  and  near  Detroit. — Their  character. — Their  habits. — Their  objections  to 
free  government. — Delays  in  administering  justice. — Judicial  decisions  of  the 
military  commandants — Acceptable  to  the  French  inhabitants. — Pawnee 
Indians  bought  and  sold  as  slaves. 

Early  in  1796,  the  British  government  surrendered  the 
northern  posts,  including  Fort  Miami,  built  in  1794,  by 
Governor  Simcoe,  at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids  of  the  Maumee, 
together  with  the  town  of  Detroit,  and  the  military  works, 
both  there  and  on  the  island  of  Mackinaw,  in  pursuance  of 
the  treaty  negotiated  by  Chief  Justice  Jay,  in  1793. 

The  posts  were  delivered  to  General  Wayne,  who  had 
been  authorised  to  receive  them,  by  the  President  of  the 
United  States.  As  soon  as  he  had  performed  that  duty, 
and  had  made  the  necessary  arrangements  to  have  the 
works  properly  garrisoned  and  supplied,  he  embarked  for 
Erie,  on  his  way  to  the  seat  of  government,  very  late  in  the 
season.*     Unfortunately,  he  was  seized,  on  the  passage, 

*  One  of  the  motives  which  induced  General  Wayne  to  proceed  from  De- 
troit, on  his  way  to  Philadelphia,  after  the  surrender  of  the  posts,  was  to  meet 
and  refute,  a  set  of  charges  exhibited  against  him,  by  General  Wilkinson,  a 
copy  of  which  he  had  received,  from  the  War  Department,  though  it  was  not 
generally  known,  that  any  thing  of  the  kind  existed.     He  had  just  conquered 


276  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

with  a  violent  attack  of  gout  in  the  stomach,  which  termi- 
nated his  life,  before  the  vessel  reached  the  port  of  her  des- 
tination. He  was  buried  at  Erie.  When  the  body  was 
disinterred  by  his  son,  many  years  afterwards,  for  the  pur- 

the  Indians— compelled  them  to  sue  for  peace,  and  receive  it  on  his  own 
terms — and  had  redeemed  the  character  of  the  nation,  from  the  reproach  cast 
on  it,  by  the  defeat,  and  almost  total  annihilation  of  one  army,  and  by  heavy 
losses,  and  an  unexpected  failure,  in  the  anticipated  results  of  another.  Thus 
covered  with  laurels,  and  hailed  by  the  nation  as  a  hero  and  a  conqueror,  it 
would  seem  incredible,  that  he  was  going  to  the  seat  of  government,  to  answer 
accusations,  implicating  his  character,  and  his  military  fame;  yet  such  was 
the  fact. 

It  was  said,  that  in  conversation  with  his  friends  and  others,  with  whom  he 
conversed,  he  spoke  of  the  charges  as  being  unfounded,  and  malicious;  as 
they  were  in  the  estimation  of  every  person  who  knew  his  character,  and 
knew  also,  that  he  prized  it  more  highly  than  he  did  his  life.  No  attempt  was 
ever  made  to  sustain  any  one  of  them — but  few  persons  ever  heard  of  their 
existence;  and,  at  the  War  Department,  they  were  entirely  disregarded. 

General  Wilkinson,  who  was  one  of  the  most  accomplished  men  of  his  day, 
either  in,  or  out  of  the  army,  and  had  acquired  the  character  of  a  brave  officer, 
had  unfortunately  contracted  an  early  prejudice  against  General  Wayne; 
which  commenced  during  the  Revolutionary  War,  in  which  they  both  served 
with  reputation,  from  its  commencement  to  its  close.  That  state  of  mind 
predisposed  him  to  pursue  an  unfriendly  course  towards  General  Wayne,  and 
to  avail  himself  of  every  opportunity  to  diminish  the  respect  and  confidence  in 
him,  which  military  officers  ought  always  to  feel  towards  their  Commander-in- 
chief. 

The  opportunity  General  Wilkinson  had,  of  making  impressions  on  the 
minds  of  the  army,  unfriendly  to  General  Wayne,  may  be  learnt  from  the 
fact,  that  he  received  the  appointment  of  a  Brigadier  General  in  the  spring  of 
1792,  and  being  then  a  Colonel  at  Fort  Washington,  immediately  assumed  the 
command  of  the  army;  and  that  General  Wayne,  although  appointed  Com- 
mander-in-chief previous  to  that  time,  did  not  arrive  at  Cincinnati  till  Septem- 
ber, 1793,  the  arrangements  necessary  for  the  coming  campaign,  having  de- 
tained him  at  Philadelphia  and  Pittsburgh.  In  October,  1792,  we  find  him  at 
the  latter  place,  perfecting  those  arrangements]  and  also  taking  testimony  to 
elucidate  the  facts,  connected  with  the  assassination  of  Colonel  Hardin  and 
Major  Trueman,  who  had  been  sent  from  Fort  Washington,  with  a  flag  to 
the  Indians. 

In  March  following,  the  negotiations  for  peace  with  the  North-western  In- 
dians commenced  at  Niagara,  and  were  continued  till  late  in  August;  during 
which  time,  the  offioem  of  the  army  wero  ordered  to  remain  in  atutu  ijiw,  and 
not  to  permit  any  military  movement  whatever  to  be  made.       This  order  de- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  277 

pose  of  being  removed  to  the  place  of  Lid  nativity,  the  skin 
and  flesh  were  sound,  and  exhibited  no  signs  of  decay.  As 
the  body  had  been  committed  to  its  mother  earth  without 
embalming,  and  without  any  other  process  intended  to  pre- 

tained  the  General  at  Pittsburgh,  and  at  Legionville,  till  the  close  of  the  sum- 
mer of  1793,  when  he  repaired  to  Cincinnati.  During  this  interval,  General 
Wilkinson  had  the  chief  command  at  Fort  Washington,  and  at  all  the  outposts 
of  that  region,  where  his  talents  were  successfully  employed  in  winning  over 
and  concentrating  on  himself,  the  confidence  and  friendship  of  the  officers, 
and  others  connected  with  the  army — an  undertaking  for  which  no  person 
could  be  better  qualified  than  himself.  His  deportment  was  easy  and  graceful; 
and  in  his  general  intercourse,  he  manifested  great  suavity  of  manners.  In 
these  respects,  he  differed,  very  much,  from  the  Commander-in-chief;  who, 
though  an  accomplished,  well  educated  gentleman,  possessed  a  firmness,  de- 
cision, and  bluntness  of  character,  which,  at  times,  had  the  appearance  of 
roughness,  if  not  rudeness,  and  occasionally  gave  offence. 

Most  men,  whose  achievements  have  distinguished  them  above  their  fellows, 
have  had  some  striking  peculiarity,  not  common  to  others.  This  was  the  case 
with  General  Wayne,  and  must  have  induced  the  Indians,  who  were  very 
acute  in  discriminating,  and  drawing  comparisons,  to  select  for  him  the  name 
of  the  'Big  Wind,'  meaning  the  tornado;  there  being  no  single  word  in  their 
language,  to  express  that  idea.  The  fitness  of  the  name  they  selected,  will 
readily  occur  to  those,  who  have  a  knowledge  of  his  character;  and  of  the 
promptness,  energy  and  unflinching  boldness  of  his  movements.  His  official 
letter  to  General  Washington,  communicating  the  successful  result  of  his  des- 
perate assault  on  Stony  Point,  has  been  referred  to,  as  being  somewhat  pecu- 
liar; and  as  affording  some  indication  of  his  cast  of  mind,  and  general  deport- 
ment.    It  is  in  these  words: 

Stony  Point,  July  16th,  1779,  Two  o'clock,  A.  M. 
Dear  General : 

The  fort  and  garrison,  with  Colonel  Johnson,  are  ours — our  officers 
and  men,  behaved  like  men  determined  to  be  free. 

Yours,  most  sincerely, 

ANTHONY  WAYNE. 
General  Washington. 

The  contrast  between  the  two  men  was  very  striking;  and  the  efforts  which 
had  been  made  by  General  Wilkinson,  and  those  who  were  most  warmly  at- 
tached to  his  person,  had  induced  a  very  large  majority  of  the  officers  to  arrange 
themselves  under  the  banner  of  one  or  the  other  of  those  distinguished  men. 
This  unpleasant  state  of  feeling,  prevailed  during  the  whole  of  the  eventful 
campaign  of  1793-4;  and  until  the  lamented  death  of  General  Wayne.  There 
were  a  few  who  kept  aloof  from  the  quarrel,  and  exhibited  no  appearance  of 


278  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

serve  it  from  decay,  the  condition  in  which  it  was  found  by 
his  son,  must  have  been  the  result  of  some  antiseptic  influ- 
ence, exerted  by  the  surrounding  earth,  which,  in  process 
of  time,  might  have  converted  it  into  a  mummy. 

bad  feeling  towards  either  of  the  parties.  Their  number,  however,  was  small; 
and  it  speaks  well  for  the  Commander-in-chief,  that  the  officers  most  intimately 
connected  with  him,  were  of  that  number. 

There  was  much  talent  in  the  military  family  of  Brigadier  General  Wilkin- 
son. In  this,  as  in  almost  every  transaction  of  his  life,  he  gave  proof  that  his 
knowledge  of  human  nature,  enabled  him,  with  great  certainty,  to  select  the 
men  best  calculated  to  accomplish  his  purpose.  Campbell  Smith,  one  of  the 
distinguished  family  of  that  name,  in  Baltimore,  was  a  volunteer  Aid,  and  a 
favorite.  He  abounded  in  wit  and  pleasantry;  and  his  means  of  annoying  the 
person,  against  whom  he  directed  his  efforts,  were  very  considerable. 

The  writer  of  this  note,  though  wholly  unconnected  with  the  army, 
was  an  admirer  of  the  Commander-in-chief ;  and  was  also  on  terms  of  the 
most  friendly  intercourse,  with  General  Wilkinson,  and  his  staff;  which  afford- 
ed an  opportunity  of  ascertaining  their  feelings  towards  General  Wayne. 

After  the  decisive  battle  of  August,  1794,  the  personal  friends  of  Gen.  Wil- 
kinson, particularly  the  officers  attached  to  his  family,  resorted  to  every  ex- 
pedient in  their  power,  to  undervalue  the  results  of  the  victory,  and  to  ascribe 
it  to  accident,  or  to  any  thing,  other  than  the  talents  and  skill  of  the  com- 
manding General.  It  was  alledged,  that  the  fate  of  the  day  was  to  be  attrib- 
uted, in  a  great  measure,  to  a  want  of  concert  among  the  chiefs,  of  the  tribes, 
engaged  in  the  battle — that  the  attack  made  on  the  American  troops,  was  pre- 
mature— that  not  more  than  half  of  the  Indians  had  arrived  on  the  ground, 
when  the  firing  commenced — that  Blue  Jacket,  the  Shawanee,  who  had  been 
chosen  Commander-in-chief,  of  the  Indians,  rejected  the  plan  of  attack,  recom- 
mended by  Little  Turtle,  who  afterwards  became  the  confidential  friend  oi 
General  Wilkinson,  and  was  one  of  the  most  talented  of  the  Indian  chiefs.  It 
was  also  said,  in  the  circle  of  the  General's  friends,  that  if  the  counsel  of  Lit- 
tle Turtle  had  prevailed,  there  would  have  been  a  simultaneous  attack,  of  the 
entire  Indian  force;  in  which  case,  the  American  troops  could  not  have  out- 
flanked them,  as  they  did;  which  manoeuvre  alone,  it  was  affirmed,  settled  the 
fate  of  the  day. 

The  most  authentic  account,  of  the  result  of  the  battle,  Btated  the  number 
of  Indians  loft  dead  on  tho  field  of  buttle,  to  be  upwards  of  fifty,  exclusive  of 
those  carried  off  by  their  comrades,  and  of  such  as  were  not  discovered  among 
the  grass  and  fallen  timber,  in  which  they  were  concealed,  which,  it  was  sup- 
posed, amounted  to  as  many  more.  The  verity  of  that  report  w;is  denied;  and 
Major  Smith,  in  support  of  the  denial,  very  facetiously  reported  a  dialogue 
which  had  taken  place  on  the  banks  of  the  river  Styx,  between  old  Charon 
and  the  ghost  of  one  of  General  Wuyne's  soldiers,  who  boasted  of  the  <,rn  at 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  279 

General  Wayne  was  born  in  Chester  county,  Pennsylva- 
nia, in  January,  1745,  and  was  just  completing  the  fifty- 
second  year  of  his  active  life,  when  he  was  prematurely 
stricken  from  existence. 

His  father  was  a  farmer,  highly  esteemed  for  the  excel- 
lence of  his  private  character,  and  for  many  useful  services 
rendered  the  Commonwealth  of  Pennsylvania,  particularly 
in  the  Provincial  Legislature,  and  in  several  expeditions 
against  the  Indians.  He  had  taken  great  pains  to  educate 
his  son,  at  the  Philadelphia  academy,  where  he  made  very 
considerable  proficiency  in  mathematics,  in  astronomy,  and 
in  other  branches  of  useful  science.  The  life  and  public 
services  of  this  brave,  accomplished  officer,  are  so  fully 
stated,  by  the  historians  of  his  day,  that  it  does  not  seem 
necessary,  interesting  as  they  are,  to  transfer  them  to  this 


slaughter  made  among  the  savages,  during  the  battle;  at  which  the  old  ferry- 
man shook  his  head,  and  protested  most  solemnly,  that  he  had  ferried  over  the 
ghosts  of  sixteen  Indians,  and  not  one  more. 

Perhaps  there  was  not,  among  the  friends  and  admirers  of  General  Wilkin- 
son, a  more  uncompromising  enemy  of  the  Commander-in-chief,  than  Major 
Guion;  who  was  an  accomplished  officer.  Yet,  when  the  news  of  his  death 
arrived  at  Cincinnati,  the  Major  raised  his  hands,  and  exclaimed:  "  Is  it  possi- 
ble!''—"General  Wayne  dead  !  Then  enmity  die  with  him;"  and  from  that 
hour  no  unkind  expression,  respecting  the  Commander-in-chief,  was  ever 
heard  from  his  lips. 

The  Major  possessed  a  fine,  cultivated  mind— was  an  experienced  engineer, 
and  an  exact  disciplinarian— and  had  served  with  reputation  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary war.  He  had  a  vein  of  wit  and  satire,  which  he  occasionally  indulged; 
and,  sometimes,  to  an  extent,  that  brought  him  into  momentary  collision, 
with  his  best  friends.  Being  a  man  of  genuine  courage,  he  held  it  as  a  max- 
im, that  no  officer  should  be  suffered  to  remain  in  the  army,  whose  discern- 
ment could  not,  readily,  apprehend  an  insult;  and  whose  courage  did  not 
prompt  him,  instantly,  to  resent  it.  Influenced  by  that  sentiment,  it  was  not 
uncommon  for  him  to  resort  to  some  expedient,  suggested  by  the  occasion,  to 
test  the  nerve  of  young  officers,  on  their  joining  the  army,  for  the  first  time. 
Such  experiments,  he  found,  were  sometimes  hazardous;  but,  generally,  he 
succeeded,  in  learning  the  secret,  he  was  in  quest  of,  in  time  to  avoid  any  un- 
pleasant result. 


280  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

narrative.  It  may  suffice,  therefore,  to  say,  that  there  was 
scarcely  an  important  battle,  or  hazardous  enterprise,  from 
the  beginning  to  the  end  of  the  Revolutionary  struggle,  in 
which  he  was  not,  more  or  less,  distinguished. 

Before  the  Revolutionary  war  began,  he  was  a  deputy  in 
the  Provincial  Congress  of  his  native  state ;  which  assem- 
bled in  1774.  In  the  same  year,  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Provincial  Legislature.  In  the  year  following,  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety.  In  the  fall  of 
the  same  year,  he  raised  a  corps  of  volunteers,  who  unani- 
mously elected  him  their  Colonel.  He  was  in  the  unsuc- 
cessful attack  on  the  British  at  Three  Rivers,  in  Canada; 
where  he  was  wounded.  At  the  battle  of  Brandywine,  he 
was  distinguished;  in  the  succeeding  battle  of  Germantown 
he  led  his  division  into  the  thickest  of  the  fight,  received 
two  wounds,  and  had  his  horse  killed  under  him.  For  his 
gallantry  in  the  subsequent  battle  of  Monmouth,  General 
Washington  mentioned  him  in  his  official  letter,  with  great 
approbation. 

His  desperate  and  successful  attack  on  Stony  Point, 
which  gave  him  the  name  of  "Mad- Anthony,"  and  procured 
for  him  a  gold  medal  from  Congress,  can  never  be  forgot- 
ten. After  distinguishing  himself  at  the  capture  of  Lord 
Cornwallis,  he  was  sent  by  General  Washington,  to  take  the 
command  of  the  troops  in  Georgia,  where  the  enemy  were 
making  great  headway.  After  some  severe  battles,  he 
defeated,  routed,  and  drove  them  from  the  state.  For 
his  bravery  and  important  services  on  that  occasion,  he 
received  the  thanks  of  the  Legislature,  and  was  presented 
with  a  valuable  farm.  His  next  military  achievements 
were  those  in  which  he  was  employed  in  the  North-western 
Territory,  when  death  terminated  his  career. 

It  would  be  a  pleasing  task,  and  an  easy  one,  to  collect 
materials  enough  to  form  a  volume  of  brilliant  and  useful 
deeds,  achieved  by  that  distinguished  warrior,  who  shared 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  281 

largely  in  the  confidence  and  friendship  of  Washington, 
from  the  commencement  of  the  Revolution,  to  the  close  of 
his  life ;  but  the  historians  of  his  day  have  superseded  the 
necessity  of  such  a  labor. 

The  Governor  of  the  North-western  Territory,  who  had 
accompanied  the  General  to  Detroit,  and  was  present  when 
the  possession  of  the  posts  was  delivered,  proceeded  im- 
mediately to  establish  a  new  county  on  the  strait,  to  which 
he  gave  the  name  of  Wayne ;  in  compliment  to  the  chief, 
whose  victory  at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids,  two  years  before, 
had  hastened  the  execution  of  the  treaty  of  1793,  by  the 
British  government.  The  seat  of  justice  for  the  new  county 
was  established  at  Detroit,  a  garrison  town,  compactly  built 
on  very  narrow  streets,  most  of  them  not  exceeding  one 
rod  in  width,  and  completely  enclosed  by  strong  pickets. 
It  was  defended  by  a  fort  on  the  north,  and  by  batteries  on 
the  margin  of  the  strait.  The  citadel,  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  commandant,  and  his  suite,  was  erected  within 
the  pickets,  and  was  a  spacious  edifice,  with  an  esplanade 
in  front  of  sufficient  dimensions  to  manoeuvre  a  regiment 
of  troops.  The  town  was  the  most  ancient  on  the  upper 
lakes,  having  been  settled  by  the  French,  as  early  as  1683  ; 
and  it  was  the  capital  of  Upper  Canada,  till  it  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  United  States.* 


*  When  the  American  troops  took  possession  of  the  northern  posts,  the 
inhabitants  of  Detroit,  and  its  contiguous  settlements,  from  Lake  St.  Clair,  to 
the  river  Raisin,  on  both  sides  of  the  strait,  were,  almost  exclusively,  Canadian 
French,  who  were  the  owners  and  cultivators  of  the  soil.  The  land  had  been 
laid  out,  originally,  into  farms,  of  very  narrow  fronts— in  most  instances  not 
more  than  fifty  rods— and  running  back  from  one  to  two  miles,  for  quantity. 
The  owners  and  occupiers  were  extremely  ignorant,  and  were  under  the  influ- 
ence of  a  strong  religious  superstition.  They  had  been  treading  in  the  foot- 
steps of  their  fathers,  time  out  of  mind,  like  mere  imitative  beings,  without 
seeming  to  know  that  any  improvement  had  been  made  in  agriculture,  since 
Noah  planted  his  vineyard.  They  raised  the  same  crops  without  variation, 
and  in  the  same  succession,  they  had  been  accustomed  to  see,  from  boyhood. 
When  a  field  became  exhausted,  it  was  suffered  to  rest,  till  it  became  partially 


282  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

The  old  town  which  was  surrendered  to  the  United  States 
was  entirely  burnt  down,  in  1805,  and  was  afterwards 
rebuilt  on  a  new  and  more  convenient  plan.  It  had  been 
for  many  years,  the  principal  depot  of  the  fur  trade  of  the 


recruited,  by  its  own  scanty,  spontaneous  products,  and  by  the  rains  and  dews 
of  heaven.  Their  houses,  barns,  and  other  improvements,  were  fronting  on 
the  strait;  separated  from  it,  by  a  narrow  road,  which  ran  along  the  edge  of 
the  water.  Each  farm  had  an  orchard  contiguous  to  the  house,  containing  a 
variety  of  fine  fruit.  When  the  litter  about  the  barn  and  stable,  increased  so 
much,  as  to  become  inconvenient,  they  piled  it  on  sleds,  drew  it  down  to  the 
strait,  which  was  just  at  hand,  and  threw  it  into  the  water.  Under  that  prac- 
tice, the  soil,  though  naturally  good,  produced  very  light  crops,  and  the  price 
of  every  agricultural  product,  was  extravagantly  high.  That  continued  to  be 
the  case,  till  emigrants  from  the  United  States,  purchased,  and  settled  among 
them,  and  introduced  a  better  system  of  agriculture. 

The  native  French  were  Catholics,  and  conscientiously  exact  in  the  perform- 
ance of  their  religious  duties.  Their  tithes  were  regularly  brought  and 
deposited  in  the  storehouse  of  the  priest,  with  apparent  cheerfulness.  Their 
frequent  attendance  at  church,  which  seemed  to  be  every  day,  attracted  the 
notice  of  Judge  Symmes ;  who  incautiously,  but  from  the  best  and  purest 
motives,  introduced  that  subject,  in  his  charge  to  the  Grand  Jury,  and  en- 
deavored to  convince  them  that  they  consumed  more  time  in  the  discharge  of 
religious  duty  than  was  required  by  the  Scriptures,  or  consisted  with  their 
temporal  prosperity.  That  interference  gave  great  offence,  and  produced  a 
general  excitement  in  the  town  and  vicinity.  The  remarks  of  the  Judge 
were,  probably,  misunderstood,  but  certainly  very  much  exaggerated,  by  those 
who  reported  them.  By  some  it  was  viewed  as  an  attempt,  by  the  American 
government,  to  put  down  their  religion;  but,  as  soon  as  the  dissatisfaction 
was  known,  the  Judge  made  a  very  conciliatory  explanation  from  the  bench, 
which  gave  general  satisfaction,  and  removed  the  difficulty. 

In  consequence  of  the  fact  that  a  large  proportion  of  those  who  were 
engaged  in  the  business  of  the  court,  either  as  suitors,  witnesses,  or  jurors, 
were  unable  to  speak  the  English  language,  it  became  necessary  to  employ 
sworn  interpreters,  which  rendered  the  business  very  tedious,  and  in  sonn- 
respects,  uninteresting;  as  every  thing  said  in  the  progress  of  a  cause,  1>\  the 
court,  the  bar,  or  witnesses,  was  to  be  interpreted,  sentence  by  sentence,  as  it 
came  from  the  lips  of  the  speaker. 

Previous  to  the  establishment  of  American  courts,  at  Detroit,  all  matters  of 
controversy,  among  the  inhabitants,  had  been  settled  in  a  summary  way,  by 
the  Commandant,  to  whoso  decision  the  inhabitant!  had  been  accustomed  to 
submit.  They  had  heon  hahituated,  all  their  lives,  to  this  summary,  expedi- 
tious mode  of  settling  their  disputes;  and  were,  consequently,  very  much 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  283 

north  west,  and  the  residence  of  a  large  number  of  English 
and  Scotch  merchants,  who  were  engaged  in  it,  and  was  of 
course  a  place  of  great  business.  The  greater  part  of  the 
merchants    engaged   in    the    fur   trade,    both  Scotch   and 


dissatisfied  with  the  slow,  tedious  progress  of  an  American  court;  against 
which  they  complained  very  loudly. 

One  of  the  consequences  of  the  change  of  government,  and  of  the  intro- 
duction of  judicial  tribunals  in  that  country,  was  the  commencement  of  a 
large  number  of  suits,  many  of  them  to  test  the  correctness  of  the  decisions 
of  the  Commandants,  particularly  in  cases  involving  the  title  to  real  estate. 
The  docket  was  soon  crowded  with  cases,  and  the  practice  became  as  lucrative 
as  that  of  any  other  county  in  the  Territory.  The  result  was  similar  to  that 
which  took  place  in  1798,  in  Mississippi,  after  the  establishment  of  courts  of 
justice  in  that  Territory,  and  was  brought  about  by  the  same  causes. 

Among  the  advantages  of  which  the  people  of  Detroit  then  boasted,  was  the 
excellence  of  their  domestic  servants.  No  visitor  from  the  States  could  spend 
any  time,  at  a  public  or  private  house  in  that  city,  without  being  satisfied,  that 
they  did  possess  that  advantage  in  a  greater  degree,  than  the  inhabitants  of  any 
other  part  of  the  United  States. 

The  Canadian  French  were  naturally  obstinate  and  headstrong;  and  were 
illiterate  and  untaught  in  the  principles  of  equality,  professed  and  practiced  in 
republics.  They  had  grown  up  from  infancy  under  the  impression,  that  na- 
ture had  established  different  orders  in  society — that  power  and  rank  were 
inseparable  from  wealth;  and  that  inferiority  and  submission  were  ordained 
for  the  poor.  That  impression  was  carried  out  into  practice,  and  accounts,  in 
a  great  measure,  for  the  excellence  of  their  hirelings  and  domestics;  but  their 
best  servants  were  the  Pawnee  Indians,  and  their  descendants,  who  were  held, 
and  disposed  of,  as  slaves,  under  the  French  and  British  governments — a  spe- 
cies of  slavery  which  existed  to  a  considerable  extent  in  Upper  Canada.  It 
was  introduced  at  the  early  settlement  of  the  country,  and  was  founded  on 
the  assumed  right  of  selling  captives,  taken  in  war,  as  slaves.  The  Pawnees 
were  numerous  and  powerful;  but  were  considered  as  degraded,  by  all  the 
other  tribes;  on  which  account,  prisoners  taken  from  them  by  any  other  nation 
were  condemned  to  slavery,  and  were  held  as  slaves  by  the  captors,  or  sold  as 
such  to  others.  Many  of  them  were  purchased  by  the  Canadians,  and  em- 
ployed as  drudges  in  the  fur  trade,  and,  frequently,  as  house  servants.  The 
Indian  code  justified  the  putting  of  prisoners  to  death,  which  had  been  their 
common  punishment,  till  it  was  commuted  for  the  milder  one  of  being  sold 
into  slavery  for  life.  That  relation  existed  when  the  country  was  delivered  up 
to  the  United  States;  though  the  practice  of  purchasing  Indian  captives  as 
slaves,  by  the  white   people,  had  ceased  before  the  surrender;  and,  conse- 


284  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

English,  had  their  domiciles  at  Detroit;  and  the  nature  of 
the  trade  was  such  as  to  require  large  amounts  of  capital, 
in  order  to  be  profitable;  because  the  great  distance,  and 
the  immense  extent  of  country,  over  which  their  furs  and 
peltry  were  collected,  rendered  it  impossible  to  turn  the 
capital  employed  more  than  once  in  a  year,  and  sometimes 
once  in  two  years.  The  business  was  also  extremely  labo- 
rious and  precarious.  In  some  seasons,  their  profits  were 
enormously  large  ;  in  others,  they  were  small ;  and  occasi- 
onally, they  were  subjected  to  heavy  losses. 

During  a  large  portion  of  the  year,  they  had  to  endure  the 
fatigues  and  privations  of  the  wilderness;  and  as  often  as 
they  returned  from  those  laborious  excursions  to  their  fam- 
ilies and  comfortable  homes,  they  indulged  most  freely  in 
the  delicacies  and  luxuries  of  high  living.  Scarcely  a  day 
passed  without  a  dinner  party,  given  by  some  one  of  them, 
at  which  the  best  of  wine  and  of  other  liquors,  and  the  rich- 
est viands  furnished  by  the  country,  and  by  commerce,  were 
served  up  in  great  profusion,  and  in  fine  taste.  Genteel 
strangers  who  visited  the  place,  were  generally  invited  to 
their  houses,  and  their  sumptuous  tables ;  and  although  at 
this  day,  such  a  practice  would  be  considered  a  breach  of 
moral  duty,  as  well  as  of  good  breeding,  they  competed 
with  each  other  for  the  honor  of  drinking  the  most,  as  well 
as  the  best  wine,  without  being  intoxicated  themselves,  and 
of  having  at  their  parties  the  greatest  number  of  intoxica- 
ted guests.  This  revel  was  kept  up  in  a  greater  or  less 
degree,  during  the  season  they  remained  at  home,  as  an  ofF- 

quently,  the  principal  ]»;i r t ,  if  not  all  the  Indians  linn  in  slavery,  wore  the 
descendants  of  enslaved  captives.     Immediately  after  the  laws  of  the  United 

States  were  introduced,  and  their  courts  of  judicature  established,  the  validity 
of  that  relation  was  questional,  and  the  value  of  that  species  of  property  was 
very  much  diminished;  not  only  by  the  uncertainty  of  its  tenure,  but  by  the 
effect  which  the  discussion  of  the  subjeet  produced  on  the  minds  of  the  slaves. 
Very  soon  after  the  ri^ht  became  a  subject  of  enquiry,  public  opinion  decided 
against  it,  and  the  relation  ceased  to  exist. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  285 

set  to  the  privations  and  suffering  of  their  excursions  into 
the  wilderness. 

At  one  of  those  sumptuous  dinners,  given  by  Angus 
Mcintosh,  the  bottom  of  every  wine  glass  on  the  table  had 
been  broken  off,  to  prevent  what  were  called  heel-taps  ; 
and  during  the  evening,  many  toasts  were  given,  which  the 
company  were  required  to  drink  in  bumpers.  The  writer 
of  this  narrative  was  one  of  the  guests,  on  that  occasion ; 
but  being  in  very  delicate  and  precarious  health,  was  not 
required  to  comply  with  the  rules  prescribed  for  others ;  but 
was  permitted  to  eat  and  drink,  as  his  judgment  dictated. 
This  privilege  was  awarded  to  him  most  cheerfully,  at  all 
those  parties,  as  it  was  known  that  without  it,  he  could  not 
have  participated  in  their  hospitality. 

Soon  after  the  town  of  Detroit  came  into  the  hands  of  the 
Americans,  most  of  those  merchants  removed,  and  estab- 
lished themselves  at  Sandwich,  in  Upper  Canada,  where 
it  was  the  universal  custom  to  celebrate  the  birth-day  of 
the  king.  The  General  Court  of  the  Territory  being  in 
session  at  Detroit,  on  the  4th  of  June,  1800,  which  was  the 
birth-day  of  his  majesty,  George  III.,  the  judges  and  the 
bar,  and  also  the  officers  of  the  American  garrison,  with 
many  of  the  principal  citizens  of  Detroit,  were  invited  to 
be  present,  and  partake  in  the  festivities  of  the  occasion. 
The  invitation  was  accepted,  and  about  an  hundred  Amer- 
icans joined  in  the  festival.  A  spacious  building,  erected 
for  a  warehouse,  was  so  arranged  as  to  accommodate  be- 
tween four  and  five  hundred  persons,  with  seats  at  the 
tables,  at  the  same  time.  The  entertainment  was  splen- 
did; the  tables  were  richly  and  abundantly  supplied  with 
every  thing  which  appetite  or  taste  could  desire. 

The  loyalty  of  his  majesty's  subjects  was  evinced  by 
every  expedient  in  their  power;  and  if  a  moiety  of  their 
prayers,  in  behalf  of  their  royal  master,  had  been  granted, 
he  must  have  lived  a  thousand  years,  and  his  shadow  never 
have  grown  less. 


286  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

During  the  evening,  much  deference  was  paid,  by  the 
managers,  to  the  feelings  of  their  American  guests.  Next 
to  the  King,  the  President  of  the  United  States  was  drank; 
and  among  the  residue  of  the  toasts,  there  were  several 
complimentary  to  our  country  and  her  distinguished  states- 
men. By  pursuing  that  liberal,  respectful  course,  no  bad 
feeling  was  excited;  and  although  more  wine  was  drank, 
in  proportion  to  numbers,  than  the  writer  ever  witnessed 
on  any  other  occasion;  yet  the  party,  late  in  the  night, 
separated  in  harmony  and  mutual  good  feeling.  The 
American  garrison,  at  Detroit,  consisted  of  two  regiments, 
commanded  by  Colonel  Strong,  who,  in  consideration  of  his 
great  responsibility,  and  to  relieve  from  duty  as  many  of 
his  officers  as  practicable,  declined  to  be  a  guest,  and 
remained  at  his  post  in  the  citadel. 

At  that  party  the  court  and  bar  became  acquainted  with 
the  British  officers,  stationed  at  Fort  Maiden,  and  received 
a  pressing  invitation  to  visit  them,  and  spend  a  night  at 
their  quarters  in  the  garrison.  At  the  same  time,  Captain 
Currie,  of  the  John  Adams,  an  armed  vessel  of  the  United 
States,  politely  offered  to  convey  the  party  to  Maiden,  and 
from  thence  to  Maumee  Bay.  These  invitations  were  ac- 
cepted, and,  as  soon  as  the  court  had  finished  the  business 
of  the  term,  they  and  the  bar  sent  their  horses  by  land  to 
the  foot  of  the  Rapids,  and  embarked  for  the  British  garri- 
son. They  were  received  by  Captain  McMullcn,  the  com- 
mandant, and  entertained  with  great  hospitality.  lie  gave 
them  a  fine  supper,  good  wine,  and  excellent  beds ;  which 
were  seldom  met  with,  by  western  travelers,  in  those  early 
days  of  territorial  improvement.  In  the  morning,  the 
party  took  leave,  and  returned  to  the  vessel. 

At  that  time,  the  fort  was  in  a  very  unfinished  stc.te,  and 
no  material  or  preparation  was  discovered  for  completing 
it.  It  was  said,  however,  by  the  officers,  that  preparations 
were  in  progress  for  that  purpose,  and  that  it  was  the 
intention  of  government  to  put  the  works  in  a  complete 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  287 

state  for  defence,  without  delay.  Early  in  the  afternoon, 
the  brig  cast  anchor  in  the  Maumee  Bay,  and  the  barge 
was  let  down  and  manned.  Having  taken  leave  of  the 
officers,  the  party  took  their  seats,  and  in  a  few  hours  were 
landed  at  the  foot  of  the  Rapids.  The  passage  was  pleas- 
ant, and  the  misery  of  wading  through  the  deep  mud  of  the 
Black  Swamp  was  escaped. 

The  residue    of   the   journey    to    Cincinnati,    presented 
nothing  unusual. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

Five  thousand  white  males  in  the  Territory. — Proclamation  of  the  Governor. 
— Delegates  to  the  Assembly  elected. — Second  grade  of  Territorial  Gov- 
ernment organized. — Members  of  the  first  Territorial  Legislature. — Their 
Character. — Talents.- — Employments. — Movements  of  Colonel  Burr. — Mr. 
Smith  implicated. — Probably  without  cause. — Burr's  visit  to  Cincinnati. — 
Notice  taken  of  him. — War  with  Spain  contemplated. — May  account,  proba- 
bly, for  Burr's  movements. — Principles  of  the  Federal  party. — Their  agency 
in  forming  and  adopting  the  Federal  Constitution. — Condition  and  character 
of  the  country  improved  by  their  measures. — Origin  of  their  name. — Have 
long  ceased  to  exist  as  a  party. 

In  1798,  it  was  ascertained  that  the  North-western  Terri- 
tory contained  five  thousand  white  male  inhabitants,  and 
was  therefore  entitled,  as  a  matter  of  right,  to  enter  on  the 
second  grade  of  territorial  government,  provided  for  in  the 
ordinance  of  1787.  This  fact  was  made  known  by  the 
proclamation  of  Governor  St.  Clair,  calling  on  the  people 
to  elect  Representatives  to  the  first  General  Assembly,  and 
requiring  the  members,  when  elected,  to  meet  at  Cincin- 
nati, in  Convention,  for  the  purpose  of  nominating  ten 
persons,  to  be  returned  to  the  President  of  the  United 
States;  five  of  whom,  it  was  his  duty  to  select;  and,  with 
the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate,  commission  aa  B 
Legislative  Council.  The  Representatives  wore  chosen, 
and  assembled  at  Cincinnati,  on  the  4th  of  February,  1790, 
as  required  by  the  proclamation.  After  due  deliberation 
they  made  the  nomination — reported  it  to  tin*  Governor, 
and  then  adjourned,  to  meet  at  Cincinnati,  on  the  16tfa  of 
September,  ensuing.    The  Governor  transmitted  the  names 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  289 

of  the  nominees  to  the  Secretary  of  State ;  and,  in  due 
time,  by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate, 
the  President  appointed  "Jacob  Burnet  and  James  Findlay 
of  Cincinnati;  Henry  Vanderburgh,  of  Vincennes;  Robert 
Oliver,  of  Marietta;  and  David  Vance,  of  Vanceville;  to 
be  the  members  of  the  Legislative  Council,  of  the  Territory 
of  the  United  States,  north-west  of  the  river  Ohio,"  which 
was  announced  by  the  proclamation  of  the  Governor. 

In  choosing  members  to  the  first  Territorial  Legislature, 
the  people,  in  almost  every  instance,  selected  the  strongest 
and  best  men,  in  their  respective  counties.  Party  influence 
was  scarcely  felt;  and  it  may  be  said  with  confidence,  that 
no  Legislature  has  been  chosen,  under  the  State  Govern- 
ment, which  contained  a  larger  proportion  of  aged,  intelli- 
gent men,  than  were  found  in  that  body.  Many  of  them,  it 
is  true,  were  unacquainted  with  the  forms  and  practical 
duties  of  legislation ;  but  they  were  strong-minded,  sensible 
men,  acquainted  with  the  condition  and  wants  of  the 
country,  and  could  form  correct  opinions  of  the  operation 
of  any  measure  proposed  for  their  consideration. 

The  delegation  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  from 
the  county  of  Hamilton,  consisted  of  seven  members;  — 
William  McMillan,  John  Smith,  Robert  Benham,  Aaron 
Cadwell,  William  Goforth,  John  Ludlow,  and  Isaac  Martin, 
all  of  them  intelligent,  substantial  men. 

The  Representatives  from  the  county  of  Ross,  were, 
Thomas  Worthington,  Samuel  Findley,  Elias  Langham, 
and  Edward  Tiffin. 

From  the  county  of  Wayne— Solomon  Sibley,  Jacob 
Visgar,  and  Charles  F.  Chobart  de  Joncaire. 

From  the  county  of  Washington — Return  Jonathan 
Meigs,  and  Paul  Fearing. 

From  the  county  of  Jefferson — James  Pritchard. 

From  the  county  of  St.  Clair— Shadrach  Bond. 

From  the  county  of  Randolph — John  Edgar. 

From  the  county  of  Knox— John  Small.— And, 
19 


290  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

From  the  county  of  Adams — Joseph  Darlington,  and 
Nathaniel  Massie. 

As  has  been  before  stated,  the  first  Legislative  Council 
consisted  of  James  Findlay,  and  Jacob  Burnet,  of  Hamilton 
county;  Henry  Vanderburgh,  of  Knox;  David  Vance,  of 
Jefferson;  and  Robert  Oliver,  of  Washington  county. 

The  whole  number  of  the  little  band  of  pioneers,  who 
composed  the  first  General  Assembly,  with  the  exception 
of  Judge  Sibley,  of  Detroit,  General  Darlington,  of  West 
Union,  and  Jacob  Burnet,  of  Cincinnati,  have  been  long 
since  gathered  to  their  fathers ;  and,  according  to  the 
course  of  nature,  they  too,  must  soon  follow  their  col- 
leagues, as  the  youngest  of  them  is  now  on  the  verge 
of  fourscore  years.* 

Several  of  the  members  of  that  Assembly  were  men  of 
the  first  order  of  talents ;  and,  with  scarcely  an  exception, 
they  would  all  be  now  estimated  as  well  qualified  for  State 
legislators. 

Of  the  first  class  was  William  McMillan,  of  Hamilton 
county.  He  possessed  an  intellect  of  a  high  order;  and 
had  acquired  a  fund  of  information,  general  as  well  as  pro- 
fessional, which  qualified  him  for  great  usefulness,  in  the 
early  legislation  of  the  Territory.  He  was  a  native  of 
Virginia,  educated  at  William  and  Mary,  and  was  one  of 
the  first  adventurers  to  the  Miami  Valley.  He  was  the 
son  of  a  Scotch  Presbyterian  of  the  strictest  order,  who 
had  educated  him  for  the  ministry;  and  who  was,  of  course 
greatly  disappointed,  when  he  discovered  that  he  was 
unwilling  to  engage  in  that  profession,  and  had  set  his 
heart  on  the  study  and  practice  of  the  law.  After  many  seri- 
ous discussions  on  the  subject,  the  son,  who  understood  the 
feelings  and  prejudices  of  his  father,  at  length  told  him  he 


*  Since  this  article  was  written,  Judge  Sibley  has  paid  the  debt  of  miture. 
lie  died  at  Detroit  in  1845,  at  tbe  advanced  age  of  sevenly-sevcn,  universally 
beloved  and  respected. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  291 

would  comply  with  his  request,  but  that  it  must  be  on  one 
condition— that  he  should  be  left  at  perfect  liberty  to  use 
Watts's  version  of  the  Psalms.  The  old  gentleman  was 
greatly  astonished,  and  rebuked  his  son  with  severity;  but 
never  mentioned  the  subject  to  him  afterwards. 

Mr.  Sibley  was  a  lawyer  of  high  standing,  and  was  consid- 
ered one  of  the  most  talented  men  of  the  House.  He  pos- 
sessed a  sound  mind,  improved  by  a  liberal  education,  and 
a  stability  and  firmness  of  character,  which  commanded 
general  respect,  and  secured  to  him  the  confidence  and  the 
esteem  of  his  fellow  members.  He  afterwards  married  the 
only  daughter  of  Colonel  Sproat,  of  Marietta,  who  had  been 
a  meritorious  officer  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution.  Mrs. 
Sproat  was  the  daughter  of  the  venerable  Commodore 
Whipple,  of  revolutionary  memory. 

Mr.  Meigs  and  Mr.  Fearing  were  lawyers  of  Marietta,  in 
Washington  county.  The  former  afterwards  filled  the 
office  of  Judge  of  the  General  Court  of  the  Territory; 
Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  State  of  Ohio;  Gov- 
ernor of  that  State;  and  Postmaster  General  of  the  United 
States,  under  the  administration  of  Mr.  Monroe. 

The  latter  was  elected  delegate  to  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States,  in  the  year  1800,  and  took  his  seat  in  that 
body,  in  December,  1801. 

Mr.  Darlington  and  Mr.  Massie,  of  Adams  county,  were 
among  the  earliest  and  most  enterprising  adventurers  to  the 
Northwestern  Territory ;  and  shared  largely  in  the  dangers 
and  privations  attending  the  first  settlement  of  the  country. 
They  were  useful  members  of  the  House,  and  occupied  a 
high  standing  in  the  estimation  of  the  people. 

Mr.  Massie  was  a  surveyor  and  locator  of  Virginia  Mili- 
tary Land  Warrants,  in  the  district  between  the  Scioto 
and  Little  Miami  rivers ;  reserved  for  that  purpose,  in  the 
deed  of  session  of  Virginia.  His  manners  were  polished 
and  agreeable;  his  talents  and  acquirements  were  respect- 
able ;  and,  having  been  brought  up  in  the  State  of  Virginia, 


292  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

he  possessed  some  of  the  peculiarities  which  distinguish  the 
citizens  of  the  Old  Dominion  from  those  of  other  States. 

Mr.  Darlington  was  also  a  Virginian,  by  birth.  He 
had  a  bold,  enterprising  mind,  and  enjoyed  the  confidence 
of  the  people  of  the  Territory,  in  a  high  degree ;  in  con- 
sequence of  which,  he  has  been  continued  in  office  from 
the  adoption  of  the  second  grade  of  Territorial  govern- 
ment, until  very  recently;  and,  although  an  octogenarian, 
he  discharged  the  duties  of  Clerk  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and 
of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  with  great  punctuality  and 
exactness. 

The  county  of  Ross  had  a  representation  which  was  not 
excelled  in  talent  and  energy,  by  that  of  any  other  in  the 
Territory.  She  selected  her  strongest  men  as  guardians  of 
her  interest.  Worthington,  Tiffin,  Findley,  and  Langham, 
and  subsequently,  Nathaniel  Massie,  were  qualified  to  ex- 
ert an  influence  in  any  deliberative  assembly.  They  were 
all  natives  of  Virginia,  excepting  Mr.  Tiffin,  who  was  born 
in  Great  Britain,  and,  as  was  generally  understood,  and 
believed,  came  to  this  country  in  the  capacity  of  a  sur- 
geon's mate,  in  the  army  of  General  Burgoyne.  Mr.  Wor- 
thington and  Mr.  Tiffin  were  afterwards,  in  succession, 
Senators  in  Congress,  and  Governors  of  the  State  of  Ohio; 
and  participated  largely  in  the  confidence  and  patronage  of 
the  State.  General  Findley  and  Major  Langham  were 
officers  in  the  army  of  the  Revolution,  and  had  been  dis- 
tinguished by  their  bravery  and  good  conduct. 

Mr.  Benham,  of  the  Hamilton  delegation,  was  an  officer 
in  the  Revolutionary  War.  In  1777,  he  descended  the  Ohio 
to  St.  Louis,  with  a  party  of  seventy  or  eighty  men,  in  keel 
boats,  from  Pittsburgh,  commanded  by  Major  Rogers,  for 
the  purpose  of  procuring  clothing  for  the  American  troops. 
On  their  return,  they  landed  about  a  mile  below  the  Little 
Miami,  on  the  Kentucky  shore,  to  prepare,  and  eat  llnir 
breakfast.  While  there,  they  were  discovered  by  a  party 
of  six  or  seven  hundred  British  and  Indians,  who  had  d<  - 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  293 

scended  the  Little  Miami  in  canoes,  on  their  way  to  attack 
the  frontiers  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina;  by  whom 
they  were  surrounded  and  destroyed.  Mr.  Benham,  with 
a  broken  thigh,  was  so  concealed  by  high  weeds  and  thick 
underbrush,  that  he  escaped  the  notice  of  the  savages,  and 
was  left  alive  on  the  ground.  After  the  enemy  had  disap- 
peared, he  succeeded  in  crawling  to  the  river,  at  the  mouth 
of  Licking,  carrying  with  him  his  rifle  and  ammunition ; 
where  he  found  one  of  his  comrades,  with  both  his  arms 
broken,  they  being  the  only  two  of  the  party  who  escaped 
with  life. 

They  remained  in  that  hopeless  condition  several  days, 
during  which  time  Mr.  Benham,  having  the  use  of  his  arms 
and  hands,  obtained  food  by  shooting  game,  which  his  com- 
panion brought  in,  in  his  teeth,  and  in  the  same  way  he 
brought  water  in  his  hat,  from  the  river.  They  subsisted  on 
raw  flesh,  and  river  water,  till  they  discovered  a  Kentucky 
boat  descending  the  Ohio,  on  its  way  to  the  Falls,  which 
they  hailed.  At  first  the  persons  on  board  fearing  a  decoy, 
refused  to  answer  ;  but,  after  much  entreaty,  and  the  most 
solemn  assurances  that  they  were  wounded  Americans,  and 
that  there  were  no  Indians  in  the  neighborhood,  the  boat 
came  to  with  great  hesitation  and  fear,  took  them  in,  and 
conveyed  them  to  the  Falls,  where  their  wounds  were 
cured. 

Mr.  Benham  was  one  of  the  first  adventurers  to  Judge 
Symmes'  purchase.  He  served  in  the  army  under  General 
Harmar,  in  1789— was  in  the  bloody  defeat  of  St.  Clair,  on 
the  4th  of  November,  1791,  and  shared  in  the  glorious  vic- 
tory of  Wayne,  on  the  20th  of  August,  1794. 

He  was  possessed  of  great  activity,  muscular  strength, 
and  enterprise — had  a  sound  discriminating  judgment,  and 
great  firmness  of  character— and  was  a  safe  and  useful 
member  of  the  assembly.  He  was  the  grandsire  of  the 
accomplished  Mrs.  Harriet  Prentice,  of  Louisville. 

Colonel  Edgar  was  an  inhabitant  of  Canada,  when  the 


294  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

American  Revolution  commenced,  but  being  in  principle,  a 
warm  decided  Whig,  he  left  the  British  territory — removed 
to  the  United  States,  and  was  one  of  the  corps  of  Revolu- 
tionary patriots  denominated  Canadian  Refugees.  After 
the  close  of  the  war,  he  settled  on  the  Mississippi,  where  he 
acquired  a  handsome  property,  and  lived  to  an  advanced 
age. 

John  Smith,  of  Hamilton  county,  was  scarcely  excelled 
by  any  member  in  either  house,  in  native  talent  and  men- 
tal energy.  Though  he  felt,  very  sensibly,  the  want  of  an 
early  education,  yet  the  vigor  of  his  intellect  was  such  as 
enabled  him,  measurably,  to  overcome  that  difficulty.  His 
ambition  to  excel,  urged  him  to  constant  application,  and 
soon  raised  him  to  a  fair  standing  among  the  talented  and 
influential  leaders  of  the  day.  In  1803,  he  represented  the 
State  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  and  stood  high  in 
the  confidence  of  Mr.  Jefferson.  Subsequently,  however, 
his  intimacy  with  Colonel  Burr,  put  an  end  to  all  inter- 
course between  him  and  Mr.  Jefferson.  When  the  Colonel 
was  on  his  tour  through  the  Western  country,  in  1806,  he 
spent  a  week  or  two  in  Cincinnati.  Mr.  Smith  was  then  a 
Senator,  and  had  been  a  member  of  that  body  when  Colonel 
Burr  presided  in  it,  as  Vice  President  of  the  United  States. 
He,  therefore,  very  naturally  invited  him  to  his  house,  and 
tendered  to  him  its  hospitality  during  his  stay  in  the  place. 
This  act  of  respect  and  kindness,  dictated  by  a  generous 
feeling,  was  relied  on  as  evidence  that  he  was  a  partizan 
of  the  Colonel,  and  engaged  in  his  project.  A  number  of 
persons  then  residing  in  Cincinnati,  who  were  in  constant 
and  intimate  intercourse  with  Colonel  Burr,  and  who  were 
universally  believed  to  be  engaged  in  his  undertaking,  what- 
ever it  might  have  been,  deserted  him  as  soon  as  tho  storm 
began  to  gather.  Some  of  them  figured  in  the  trial  at 
Richmond,  in  1807,  as  patriots  of  spotless  purity. 

When  the  Governor  of  Ohio  made  his  communication  to 
the  Legislature  on  the  subject,  which  was  the  commence- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  295 

merit  of  the  military  movements,  familiarly  called  at  that 
day  "the  Burr  War,"  it  was  amusing  to  see  those  men,  who 
had  so  recently  been  the  most  devoted  attendants  on  the 
Colonel,  and  the  most  vocal  in  his  praise,  denouncing  him 
as  a  traitor,  and  tendering  their  services  to  the  Governor  of 
the  State,  to  arrest  the  culprit  and  bring  him  to  justice. 
Mr.  Smith  was  a  firm,  consistent  man,  not  easily  alarmed; 
he  solemnly  affirmed  his  belief  that  Colonel  Burr  was  not 
engaged  in  any  project  injurious  to  the  country,  and  refused 
to  join  in  the  outcry  against  him,  or  to  aid  in  the  measures 
that  were  taken  to  procure  his  arrest.  The  consequence 
was,  he  was  denounced  himself,  and  a  bill  of  indictment 
found  against  him,  which  was,  however,  abandoned  with- 
out an  attempt  to  bring  him  to  trial. 

In  conversation  with  his  friends,  Mr.  Smith  stated,  that 
before  the  movements  of  Burr  had  attracted  general  notice, 
Mr.  Jefferson  requested  a  confidential  interview  with  him, 
(Smith;)  at  which  he  enquired  if  he  was  not  personally 
acquainted  with  the  Spanish  officers  of  Louisiana  and  Flor- 
ida. On  being  answered  in  the  affirmative,  he  went  on  to 
state,  that  a  war  with  Spain  seemed  to  be  inevitable;  and 
that  it  was  very  desirable  to  know  the  feelings  of  those 
men  towards  the  United  States,  and  whether  reliance  could 
be  placed  on  their  friendship,  if  a  war  should  take  place 
between  the  two  countries.  At  the  same  time,  he  re- 
quested him  to  visit  that  country,  with  reference  to  that 
object.  Mr.  Smith  stated  further,  that  he  did  visit  the 
country,  as  requested;  and  that,  on  his  return,  he  reported 
to  Mr.  Jefferson,  that  the  governor,  the  inferior  officers,  an 
the  inhabitants  generally,  were  not  only  friendly,  but 
were  desirous  of  attaching  themselves  to  the  United  States. 
This  was  in  the  summer  preceding  the  war  message 
against  Spain,  which  was  sent  to  the  two  Houses  of  Con- 
gress, in  December,  1805.  Although  that  message  was 
confidential,  it  soon  became  known  to  the  diplomatic  corps, 
at  Washington ;  and  the  French  minister  was  ordered  by  his 


296  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

master,  Napoleon,  to  inform  the  American  Government, 
that  France  would  take  part  with  Spain,  in  any  contest 
she  might  have  with  the  United  States. 

It  is  matter  of  history,  that  after  that  notice,  the  project 
against  Spain,  communicated  in  the  confidential  message, 
and  referred  to  in  the  conversation  wTith  Mr.  Smith,  was 
abandoned;  and,  about  the  same  time,  measures  were 
taken  by  the  Administration,  to  stop  the  movements  of 
Colonel  Burr.  The  inference  drawn  from  these  facts,  and 
the  order  of  time,  in  which  they  occurred,  was,  that  the 
object  of  Burr's  preparations  and  movements,  was  the  in- 
vasion of  Mexico;  that  the  government  was  apprised  of 
that  fact;  and,  that  the  settlement  of  Washita  lands  was  a 
mere  pretence  to  cover  the  real  design. 

The  persons  who  composed  the  Legislative  Council,  were 
men  much  respected,  and  in  whom  the  community  had 
confidence.  Colonel  Vanderburgh  was  an  intelligent  citi- 
zen of  Vincennes,  engaged  in  the  Indian  trade.  When 
the  Legislative  Council  was  first  organized,  he  was  chosen 
their  President,  and  held  that  office  till  he  ceased  to  be  a 
citizen  of  the  Northwestern  Territory,  by  the  establishment 
of  the  Indiana  Territory ;  the  boundaries  of  which  included 
his  residence.  After  that  division  was  completed,  and  the 
new  Territory  organized,  Mr.  Vanderburgh  was  appointed 
by  the  President,  one  of  the  Judges  of  the  General  Court; 
from  which,  it  may  be  inferred,  that  his  standing  in  that 
community  was  highly  respectable. 

David  Vance,  of  Jefferson  county,  was  a  plain  man,  of 
respectable  acquirements,  and  of  stability  and  sound  judg- 
ment. He  was  esteemed  for  integrity  and  uprightness  of 
character;  and  was,  in  all  respects,  worthy  of  confidence. 

Colonel  Robert  Oliver,  of  Washington  county,  stood  high 
in  the  confidence  of  the  community.  He  had  served  with 
credit,  as  an  officer  in  the  army  of  the  Revolution;  and, 
like  hundreds  of  others,  who  were  engaged  in  that  glorious 
struggle,  found  himself,  at  the  return  of  peace,  destitute  of 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  297 

the  means  of  subsistence,  and  without  an  occupation,  on 
which  he  could  rely  for  support.  Thus  situated,  he  joined 
the  Ohio  company  of  associates,  most  of  whom  were  Revo- 
lutionary characters,  of  New  England.  He  was,  of  course, 
one  of  the  first  band  of  pioneers  to  the  Far  West,  who 
planted  themselves  on  the  Muskingum  river,  while  the 
Territory  was  a  dreary  wilderness,  without  constitution, 
government,  or  law. 

General  James  Findlay  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  one  of  the  early  pioneers  to  the  West.  He  settled  at 
Cincinnati,  while  the  Indian  war  was  raging  with  violence ; 
and  had  his  full  share  of  exposure  to  its  dangers.  After 
Congress  had  adopted  a  system  for  the  sale  of  the  public 
lands,  and  established  a  Land  office  at  Cincinnati,  he  was 
appointed  Receiver  of  Public  Money,  and  was  continued  in 
that  station  many  years,  and  until  he  resigned  it.  He 
joined  the  army  of  General  Hull,  as  a  volunteer,  and 
marched  to  Detroit  in  command  of  one  of  the  regiments 
which  composed  that  army.  When  the  extraordinary  sur- 
render by  General  Hull  took  place,  he  returned  to  his  fam- 
ily and  his  business.  In  1825,  he  was  elected  to  Congress, 
and  was  continued  in  that  station  by  re-elections,  till  1833. 
For  many  years,  he  was  Major  General  of  the  first  Divis- 
ion of  Ohio  Militia.  He  held  a  variety  of  offices  under 
both  the  State  and  general  governments,  in  which  he  had 
the  confidence  of  the  community  in  a  high  degree. 

Mr.  Burnet;  as  has  been  stated  elsewhere,  is  a  native 
of  New- Jersey,  a  graduate  of  Princeton  College,  and  a  law- 
yer by  profession.  During  the  long  period  of  his  profession- 
al labors  at  the  bar,  both  in  the  Territory  and  State,  he  was 
placed  by  common  consent  among  the  most  respectable  of 
his  professional  brethren.  He  was  brought  up  in  the  school 
of  politicians,  who  had  been  active  agents  in  commencing 
and  sustaining  the  Revolution.  He  was  taught  to  confide 
in  the  wisdom,  and  purity  of  Washington,  and  his  confiden- 
tial associates,  who  stood  at  the  head  of  the  Federal  party — 


298  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

formed  the  new  constitution,  and  were  the  principal  agents 
in  convincing  the  people  that  it  was  their  duty  and  their 
interest  to  adopt  it.  They  settled  the  principles  and  ar- 
ranged the  plan  on  which  it  should  be  administered;  and 
under  their  guidance  it  went  into  successful  operation,  not- 
withstanding the  violent  opposition  of  the  party  which  dis- 
tinguished itself  by  the  characteristic  name  of  Anti-Fede- 
ralist. In  a  short  time,  the  new  government,  in  the  hands 
of  its  friends,  recovered  the  country  from  the  universal  dis- 
tress and  embarrassment  which  the  war  of  the  Revolution 
had  produced;  and  was  scattering  blessings  on  all  classes 
of  the  people;  when  the  Anti-Federal  party,  who,  under 
that  name,  had  resisted  its  adoption,  assumed  the  more 
fascinating  appellation  of  Republican,  and  transferred  their 
opposition  from  the  Constitution  itself,  to  the  administration 
of  it.  They  commenced  a  systematic  attack  on  the  policy 
adopted  by  President  Washington;  they  condemned  his 
leading  measures,  and  formed  a  combination  to  bring  him 
into  disrepute,  and  themselves  into  office;  and,  after  a 
conflict  of  twelve  years,  they  succeeded  in  their  project. 
In  the  judgment  of  Mr.  B.  they  were  influenced  by  mo- 
tives of  ambition,  and  were  more  anxious  to  gain  power, 
than  to  reform  abuses.  He  had  more  confidence  in  the 
men  who  formed  the  Constitution  than  in  their  oppo- 
nents, who  had  uniformly  resisted  its  adoption,  and  op- 
posed its  measures. 

Soon  after  that  party  cast  off  the  name  of  Anti-Fed- 
eralist, its  origin,  and  their  original  purpose,  were  forgot- 
ten. The  people  were  told  that  the  Federalists  were  aris- 
tocrats,  laboring  to  change  the  constitution,  by  giving  it  the 
substance,  as  well  as  the  form,  of  the  British  government. 
These  charges  were  made  so  repeatedly — with  sucl*  bold 
confidence,  and  came  from  such  high  places,  that  the  na- 
tion, at  length,  were  led  to  believe  them.  The  frafflen 
and  fathers  of  the  Constitution  were  set  down  as  its  worst 
enemies,  and  its  original   opponents  as   its   best   friend* 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  299 

The  party  which  had  been  called  Federalists,  because  they 
made  and  supported  the  new  federal  government,  were 
represented  as  its  original  enemies ;  and,  at  the  same  time, 
its  most  deadly  opponents  claimed  to  be  its  fathers  and 
guardians. 

These  false  statements,  having  obtained  credence,  after 
years  of  repetition,  the  name  of  the  party,  of  which  Wash- 
ington was  the  head,  became  a  term  of  reproach — indica- 
ting the  very  reverse  of  its  true  and  genuine  meaning. 
Mr.  B.,  however,  knew  that  it  implied,  neither  more  nor 
less,  than  devotion  to  the  new  federal  government.  For 
that  reason,  although  the  party  had  long  ceased  to  exist, 
the  great  majority  of  them  being  in  their  graves;  Mr.  B. 
retained  the  name,  and  still  cherishes  it,  as  the  distinguish- 
ing appellation,  of  the  purest  patriots  and  statesmen,  the 
country  has  ever  contained. 

When  the  party  slang  of  the  day,  which  has  been  kept 
alive,  for  sinister  purposes,  to  the  present  hour,  shall  have 
done  its  work,  and  be  forgotten,  the  historian,  without  risk 
to  his  popularity,  will  do  justice  to  that  abused,  persecuted, 
misunderstood  party*.  He  will  record  their  political  course, 
impartially,  and  will  verify  the  fact,  that  they  were  the 
fathers  of  the  Revolution — the  instigators  of  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence — and  the  framers  of  our  present  hap- 
py form  of  government ;  and  that,  by  their  efforts  and  influ- 
ence, the  country  was  raised  from  poverty  to  affluence,  and 
from  the  contempt  of  Europe,  to  the  confidence  and  admi- 
ration of  the  world.  He  will  cause  it  to  be  known,  and 
acknowledged,  that  before  they  were  driven  from  power, 
they  had  saved  the  nation  —  established  her  character  — 
renovated  her  energy,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  all  her 
subsequent  prosperity. 

A  consciousness  of  these  truths  prompted  Mr.  Jefferson 
to  declare,  in  his  inaugural  address,  at  the  moment  he  took 
the  reins  of  government  from  the  hands  of  the  Federalists : 
"We  are  all  Republicans,  we  are  all  Federalists." 


CHAPTER   XV. 

Legislature  assemble  at  Cincinnati. — Their  proceedings. — Harrison  elected 
Delegate  to  Congress. — His  instructions. — His  course  in  Congress  approved. 
— Territory  divided. — Harrison  appointed  Governor. — The  Ordinance  of 
1787. — Its  provisions. — Liberty,  civil  and  religious,  secured. — Territorial 
code  defective. — Remedied  by  the  Legislature. — French  inhabitants. — Their 
common  fields. — Burning  of  Prairies. — Injury  resulting. — Regulated. — Ju- 
risdiction on  the  Ohio  River. — Claims  of  Kentucky. — Inconveniences. — 
Act  of  the  Legislature  touching  it. — Compact  between  Virginia  and  Ken- 
tucky.— Legislation  of  the  Governor  and  Judges. — Of  the  General  Assem- 
bly.— Education  encouraged. — Protection  of  the  Indians. — Vetoes  of  the 
Governor. — Property  qualification. — Limited  slavery. — Attempt  to  intro- 
duce it. — Auditor's  Certificates. — Address  of  the  General  Assembly,  com- 
plimentary to  President  Adams. 

On  the  16th  September,  1799,  both  branches  of  the  Legis- 
lature assembled  at  Cincinnati,  elected  their  officers,  and 
informed  the  Governor  that  they  were  ready  to  proceed  to 
business.  The  Governor  met  them  the  next  day,  in  the 
chamber  of  the  Representatives,  and  in  a  very  elegant  ad- 
dress, congratulated  them  and  their  constituents  on  the  in- 
teresting change  that  had  taken  place  in  the  form  of  their 
government; — a  change,  by  which  the  power  of  making 
their  laws  had  been  taken  from  the  hands  of  men  in  whose 
appointment  they  had  no  agency,  and  over  whom  they  had 
no  control,  and  committed  to  others  of  their  own  choice. 
He  laid  before  them  a  full  and  faithful  view  of  the  c  ondi- 
tion  and  the  wants  of  the  Territory;  and  recommended  to 
their  attention  such  measures  as  he  believed  were  proper 
to  advance  the  prosperity  and  happiness  of  the  people. 

As  this  was  the  first  session  of  the   Legislature,  it  was 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  30 1 

necessarily  a  laborious  one.  The  transition  from  a  colonial 
to  a  semi-independent  government,  called  for  a  general  re- 
vision and  enlargement  of  the  statute  book.  Some  of  the 
adopted  laws  were  repealed — many  of  them  were  alter- 
ed and  amended,  and  a  long  list  of  new  acts  were  added 
to  the  code.  The  change  made  it  necessary  to  create  new 
offices,  and  prescribe  the  duties  of  those  who  were  to  fill 
them.  The  increased  expenditure,  caused  by  the  change 
which  then  took  place,  made  it  necessary  to  devise  a  plan 
of  ways  and  means  to  meet  it.  As  the  number  of  mem- 
bers in  each  branch  was  small,  and  a  portion  of  them  either 
unprepared,  or  indisposed  to  partake  largely  in  the  labor  of 
legislation,  the  principal  pressure  of  it,  rested  on  the  shoul- 
ders of  a  few. 

One  of  the  important  duties  of  the  session  was  the  elec- 
tion of  a  delegate  to  represent  the  Territory  in  Congress. 
As  soon  as  the  Governor's  proclamation  made  its  appear- 
ance, the  selection  of  a  person  to  fill  that  place  excited  gen- 
eral attention.  Several  names  were  mentioned,  and  among 
them  the  name  of  Mr.  B.,  whose  friends  pressed  him  to  be- 
come a  candidate ;  and  ventured  to  give  him  strong  assu- 
rances of  success,  if  he  would  consent  to  serve ;  but,  being, 
at  the  time,  in  an  extensive  practice,  and  not  wealthy,  he 
could  not  afford  to  quit  his  profession,  or  abstract  from  it  as 
much  time  and  attention,  as  the  duties  of  the  station  would 
require.  In  addition  to  this,  it  appeared  to  him,  that  he 
could  be  more  useful  to  the  people  of  the  Territory  in  their 
own  Legislature,  than  in  Congress.  For  these  reasons,  he 
refused  to  be  a  candidate;  and  before  the  meeting  of  the 
Legislature,  public  opinion  had  settled  down  on  William 
Henry  Harrison  and  Arthur  St.  Clair,  Jr.,  who  were  the 
only  candidates  for  the  office. 

On  the  3d  of  October,  the  two  Houses  met  in  the  Repre- 
sentative chamber,  according  to  a  joint  resolution,  previ- 
ously adopted,  and  proceeded  to  the  election.  The  ballots 
were  taken  and  counted,  when  it  appeared  that  William 


302  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Henry  Harrison,  had  twelve  votes,  and  Arthur  St.  Clair 
ten  votes.  William  Henry  Harrison  was  therefore  declared 
to  be  duly  elected.  On  being  furnished  with  a  certificate 
of  his  election,  he  resigned  the  office  of  Secretary  of  the 
Territory,  proceeded  forthwith  to  Philadelphia,  and,  Con- 
gress being  then  in  session,  immediately  took  his  seat,  as 
the  Representative  of  the  Northwestern  Territory.  Though 
he  retained  it  but  a  single  session,  he  succeeded  in  obtain- 
ing some  very  important  advantages  for  his  constituents. 

He  introduced  a  resolution  to  subdivide  the  surveys  of 
the  Public  Lands,  and  to  have  them  offered  for  sale  in 
small  tracts ;  which  he  succeeded  in  getting  through  both 
Houses,  in  opposition  to  the  interest  of  speculators ;  who 
had  till  then  monopolized  the  business  of  retailing  lands  to 
the  poorer  classes  of  the  community,  at  advanced  prices. 
That  act  was  hailed  as  the  most  beneficent  measure  that 
Congress  had  ever  adopted  for  the  people  of  the  West.  It 
put  it  in  the  power  of  every  industrious  man,  poor  as  he 
might  be,  to  become  a  freeholder — to  cultivate  his  own 
domain,  and  lay  a  foundation  for  the  support  and  future 
comfort  of  his  family.  At  the  same  session  he  obtained  a 
liberal  extension  of  the  time  of  payment,  in  behalf  of  those 
persons  who  had  procured  pre-emption  rights  to  lands  they 
had  previously  bought  of  Judge  Symmes,  lying  beyond  the 
limits  of  his  patent,  and  for  which  it  was  not  in  his  power  to 
make  titles.  That  indulgence  enabled  them  to  secure  their 
farms,  and,  eventually,  to  become  independent  and  wealthy 
men.  At  the  same  time  Congress  divided  the  Northwes- 
tern Territory, by  establishing  the  new  Territory  of  Indiana; 
of  which  Mr.  Harrison  was  appointed  Governor,  and  Su- 
perintendent of  Indian  affairs.  He  accepted  those  ap- 
pointments and  resigned  his  seat  in  Congress.  Vy  this 
division,  Mr.  Vanderburgh  became  a  citizen  of  Indiana. 
and  his  seat  in  the  Legislative  council  was  vacated. 

The  Ordinance  and  the  Compact,  which  were  the  Con- 
stitution of  the  Territory,  contained  but  little  specific  togis- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  393 

lation.  It  prescribed  the  rule  of  descents;  the  mode  of 
transferring  real  estate,  by  deed  of  lease  and  release;  and 
of  devising  or  bequeathing  it  by  will.  It  regulated  the 
right  of  dower,  and  authorised  the  transfer  of  personal 
property,  by  delivery;  saving  always  to  the  French  and 
Canadian  inhabitants,  and  other  settlers  who  had  before 
professed  themselves  citizens  of  Virginia,  their  laws  and 
customs  then  in  force  among  them,  relative  to  the  descent 
and  conveyance  of  property.  In  addition  to  these  provis- 
ions, the  compact  ordained,  that  no  person  demeaning  him- 
self in  a  peaceable  manner,  should  be  molested  on  account 
of  his  mode  of  worship,  or  religious  opinions.  It  also 
secured  to  the  inhabitants  forever,  the  benefit  of  the  writ 
of  habeas  corpus— of  trial  by  jury— of  a  proportionate 
representation  of  the  people  in  the  Legislature,  and  of 
judicial  proceedings,  according  to  the  course  of  the  Com- 
mon Law. 

It  further  provided,  "  that  all  persons  should  be  bailable, 
unless  for  capital  offences,  etc.;  that  all  fines  should  be 
moderate;  that  no  cruel  or  unusual  punishments  should 
ever  be  inflicted;  that  no  man  should  be  deprived  of  his 
liberty  or  property,  but  by  the  judgment  of  his  peers,  or  the 
law  of  the  land ;  that  if  the  public  exigency  made  it  neces- 
sary to  take  the  property,  or  services  of  any  individual,  full 
compensation  should  be  made  for  the  same ;  that  no  law 
should  ever  be  enacted  to  affect  private  contracts  or  en- 
gagements, bona  fide,  and  without  fraud,  previously  made; 
and  that  there  should  be  neither  slavery  nor  involuntary 
servitude,  other  than  for  the  punishment  of  crimes :  Pro- 
vided always,  that  any  person  escaping  into  the  Territory, 
from  whom  labor  or  service  was  lawfully  claimed,  in  any 
one  of  the  original  States,  such  fugitive  might  be  lawfully 
taken  and  conveyed  to  the  person  claiming  his  or  her  labor 
or  service." 

The  great  principles  of  civil  and  religious  liberty,  con- 
tained in  this  invaluable  document,  were  guaranteed  to  the 


304  BURNET'S  NOTES   ON  THE 

people  of  the  Territory  and  their  posterity  forever,  by  the 
venerable  Fathers  of  the  Revolution,  which  entitled  them  to 
endless  gratitude.  Valuable,  however,  as  these  principles 
were,  they  required  much  specific  legislation,  to  carry  them 
into  practical  use. 

The  statutes,  which  had  been  adopted,  from  time  to  time, 
by  the  Governor  and  Judges,  formed  a  miserable  apology 
for  a  code  of  statute  laws.  Many  subjects  of  interest  were 
not  embraced  in  them,  and  most  of  those  which  were,  were 
in  a  crude  imperfect  state.  The  most  useful  of  them  were 
taken  from  the  Pennsylvania  code,  with  the  exception  of 
one,  from  the  code  of  Virginia,  which  adopted  the  common 
law,  and  such  of  the  English  statutes,  made  in  aid  of  it, 
prior  to  the  4th  of  James  I.  as  were  of  a  general  nature, 
and  applicable  to  the  country.  Although  this  law  was  im- 
portant in  the  administration  of  justice ;  as  without  it,  the 
courts  must  have  legislated,  in  many  of  the  cases  which 
came  before  them;  yet  it  was  so  general  and  indefinite  in 
its  terms,  that  questions  were  perpetually  arising,  at  the 
bar  and  on  the  bench,  as  to  which  of  the  statutes  of  the 
English  code  were  adopted;  and  whether  such  parts  of 
statutes  as  were  applicable  to  the  state  of  the  country, 
might  be  taken,  and  others  rejected;  as,  for  example,  in  a 
case  in  which  the  defence  rested  on  a  plea  of  usury,  there 
being  no  statute  of  the  Territory  on  that  subject,  the 
defendant  relied  on  the  statute  of  13th  Elizabeth,  which 
came  clearly  within  the  terms  of  the  adopting  law,  both  as 
to  time  and  subject  matter;  yet,  as  it  authorised  an  interest 
of  ten  per  cent.,  and  the  interest  of  the  Territory,  established 
by  general  consent,  was  only  six  per  cent.,  it  became  a 
question,  whether  it  did  or  did  not  justify  that  rate  of  in- 
terest; and  if  not,  whether  the  penalty  of  the  act  could  be 
enforced  in  that  case. 

On  many  interesting  subjects,  particularly  those  relating 
to  remedies,  and  the  mode  of  enforcing  them,  there  had 
been  no  legislation.     The  course  of  the  Common  Law  was 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  305 

relied  on,  which  was  tedious,  and,  in  most  cases,  difficult 
and  expensive ;  and  the  more  so,  as  there  was  not  any 
tribunal  in  the  Territory  vested  with  Chancery  powers. 
The  Courts  of  Common  Law,  as  far  as  their  forms  and 
modes  of  administering  justice  would  permit,  assumed  those 
powers  from  necessity,  by  which  partial  relief  was  obtained. 

On  the  subject  of  the  partition  of  real  estate — assignment 
of  dower — relief  of  insolvent  debtors — settlement  of  dis- 
putes by  arbitration — divorce,  and  alimony — equitable  set 
off,  and  execution  of  real  contracts,  the  territorial  code  was 
entirely  silent.  To  supply  that  deficiency,  an  onerous 
duty  was  imposed  on  the  Legislature,  at  their  first  session. 
In  most  of  the  cases  mentioned,  laws  were  passed  providing 
simple  and  easy  modes  of  proceeding. 

The  subject  of  education  occupied  their  serious  attention ; 
and  among  other  measures,  they  instructed  the  delegate  in 
Congress  to  use  his  influence  to  induce  that  body  to  pass 
the  laws  which  were  considered  necessary  to  secure  to  the 
Territory  the  title  of  the  lands  that  had  been  promised  for 
the  support  of  schools  and  colleges,  including  section  No. 
16,  in  every  township;  which  had  been  pledged  for  the 
support  of  common  schools,  in  the  Ordinance  of  May,  1785, 
and  confirmed  by  another  of  July,  1787. 

It  was  made  the  duty7  of  the  Legislature,  by  the  Ordi- 
nance for  the  government  of  the  Territory,  "  to  observe  the 
utmost  good  faith  towards  the  Indians;  to  protect  their 
property,  rights  and  liberty;  and  to  pass  laws  founded  in 
justice  and  humanity,  for  preventing  wrongs  being  done  to 
them."  On  the  recommendation  of  the  Governor,  that  sub- 
ject was  investigated,  and  a  law  was  passed  for  their  relief, 
covering  all  the  ground  to  which  it  was  supposed  the  power 
of  the  Legislature  extended. 

As  the  dividing  line  between  the  North-western  Terri- 
tory and  the  new  Territory  of  Indiana,  had  not  been  run,  it 
was  a  matter  of  doubt,  into  which  Territory  the  island  of 
Mackinaw  and  the  adjacent  settlements  would  fall.     To 
20 


306  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

remove  that  doubt,  measures  were  taken  to  ascertain  their 
true  position.  Measures  were  also  taken  to  obtain  for  the 
people  of  Detroit  a  confirmation  of  their  right  to  a  tract  of 
land  adjoining  the  town,  which  they  had  used  from  the  first 
settlement  of  the  country,  as  a  public  common. 

The  two  houses  also  adopted  a  remonstrance,  addressed 
to  Congress,  against  the  unqualified  veto  given  to  the  Gov- 
ernor, over  the  acts  of  the  Legislature ;  and  against  the  ex- 
clusive right  he  claimed  of  dividing  and  subdividing  coun- 
ties, after  they  had  been  created  and  organized  by  himself, 
without  their  concurrence.  They  also  made  an  effort  to 
abolish  the  property  qualification,  required  by  the  Ordi- 
nance, and  to  extend  the  right  of  voting  for  members  of  the 
Legislature  of  the  Territory,  to  all  free  white  male  citizens 
of  the  age  of  twenty-one  years  and  upwards,  who  had  re- 
sided one  year  in  the  Territory,  and  who  had  paid  a  Terri- 
torial or  county  tax. 

*  During  the  same  session  (1799)  a  memorial  was  present- 
ed by  officers  of  the  Virginia  line  on  Continental  establish- 
ment, in  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  praying  for  toleration 
to  remove  with  their  slaves,  on  to  their  Military  Bounty 
Lands,  between  the  Scioto  and  Little  Miami  rivers.  The 
prayer  of  the  petition,  being  unequivocally  prohibited  by 
the  Ordinance,  the  Legislature  had  no  discretion  in  the 
case.  Their  only  course  was  to  reject  the  petition,  al- 
though it  was  apparent,  that  if  the  application  of  the  me- 
morialists could  have  been  granted,  it  would  have  brought 
into  the  Territory  a  great  accession  of  wealth,  strength, 
and  intelligence ;  yet  the  public  feeling,  on  the  subject  of 
admitting  slavery  into  the  Territory,  was  such,  that  the  re- 
quest would  have  been  denied,  by  a  unanimous  vote,  if  the 
Legislature  had  possessed  the  power  of  granting  it.  They 
were  not  only  opposed  to  slavery,  on  the  ground  of  its  be- 
ing a  moral  evil,  in  violation  of  personal  right,  but  were  of 
opinion,  that,  whatever  might  be  its  immediate  advantages, 
it  would  ultimately  retard  the  settlement,  and  check  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  307 

prosperity  of  the  Territory,  by  making  labor  less  reputable, 
and  creating  feelings  and  habits,  unfriendly  to  the  simpli- 
city and  industry,  they  desired  to  encourage  and  perpetuate. 

That  influence  was  so  strong  on  the  minds  of  the  mem- 
bers of  both  houses,  that,  after  the  rejection  of  the  memo- 
rial, they  adopted  an  address  to  the  people  of  the  Territory, 
recommending  industry  and  frugality — urging  them  to  dis- 
countenance dissipation  of  every  kind — to  encourage  home- 
manufactures,  and  retrench  unnecessary  expense.  -^ 

It  had  been  the  custom  of  the  French  inhabitants  of  the 
Illinois,  Mississippi,  and  Wabash,  from  the  first  settlement 
of  the  country,  to  enclose  their  small  farms,  which  would 
now  be  denominated  tmek-patches,  by  a  common  fence, 
which  frequently  gave  rise  to  disputes  and  quarrels ;  some- 
times, as  to  their  respective  proportions  of  expense,  in 
keeping  up  the  enclosure  —  sometimes,  by  the  uncertainty 
of  their  land-marks  —  sometimes,  by  injuries  done  to  their 
crops  by  carelessness,  or  otherwise;  and  sometimes,  in  re- 
gard to  the  use  of  the  enclosure  for  pasturage,  and  the 
number  of  animals  that  each  proprietor  should  be  allowed 
to  pasture.  These  difficulties  were,  to  them,  of  serious  im- 
portance, and  were  submitted  to  the  Legislature,  in  the 
form  of  a  memorial.  It  was  not  an  easy  matter  to  devise 
a  remedy  for  a  case  so  complex.  It  seemed  to  resemble 
that  of  a  joint-stock  company,  not  regulated  by  law,  and 
having  no  rule  for  its  management,  but  custom,  voluntarily 
submitted  to.  A  plan,  however,  was  devised,  and  made 
obligatory  on  all  concerned,  by  an  act,  which  regulated  the 
enclosing  and  cultivating  of  common  fields,  and  which  gave 
general  satisfaction. 

In  that  early  stage  of  the  settlement  of  the  Territory, 
very  serious  damage  was  frequently  done,  to  the  property 
of  the  inhabitants,  by  setting  fire  to  the  woods  and  prairies 
— sometimes  by  design,  but  more  frequently  by  careless- 
ness. It  often  happened,  that  by  such  fires,  fences,  build- 
ings, stack  yards,  and  other  improvements  were  consumed. 


308  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

The  extent  of  the  evil,  and  the  apprehension  it  produced, 
on  the  public  mind,  cannot  be  realized  by  those  who  have 
not  lived  on  the  frontier  of  a  new,  sparsely-settled  country. 
Numerous  petitions,  on  that  subject,  were  presented,  and  a 
law  was  passed  granting  relief. 

From  the  first  settlement  of  the  Territory,  the  Common- 
wealth of  Kentucky,  claimed  exclusive  jurisdiction,  on  the 
Ohio  river — which  had  been  reluctantly  submitted  to,  by 
the  people  of  the  Territory,  and  from  which  very  serious 
difficulties  and  embarrassments  had  resulted.  Persons  ar- 
rested by  Territorial  officers,  for  crimes  committed  on  board 
of  boats,  lying  at,  or  floating  near  the  shore  of  the  Terri- 
tory, were  released  on  habeas  corpus,  or  discharged  on  pleas 
to  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Territorial  courts.  Those  who  set 
up  this  exclusive  right,  claimed,  that  it  extended  to  high 
water  mark ;  and  insisted,  that  when  the  river  at  a  high 
stage,  passed  a  portion  of  its  water  through  a  bayou,  or 
over  low  ground,  into  the  main  stream  below,  the  ground, 
so  separated,  was  an  island,  within  the  meaning  of  the  act 
of  cession,  the  jurisdiction  and  soil  of  which  was  vested  in 
Kentucky.  On  that  hypothesis,  a  Virginia  Military  Land 
Warrant,  was  located,  many  years  ago,  on  land  so  situated, 
for  which  a  patent  was  obtained,  on  the  ground  before 
stated. 

This  condition  of  things  was  highly  embarrassing,  and 
frequently  resulted  in  the  escape  of  criminals,  from  de- 
served punishment.  The  claim  was  considered  extremely 
oppressive,  and  was  loudly  and  justly  complained  of. 
Many  persons  of  intelligence,  expressed  the  opinion,  that 
the  cession  of  the  entire  country,  north-west  of  the  river, 
including  jurisdiction,  as  well  as  soil,  in  connection  with 
the  fact,  that  the  river  had  been  declared  a  public  high- 
way, to  be  used  freely  as  such,  by  all  the  citizens  of  the 
United  States,  might  be  considered  as  giving  the  people  of 
the  Territory  the  jurisdiction  they  claimed.  Mr.  1?.,  with 
others,  was  disposed  to  maintain  that  opinion,  and  to  Assert 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  309 

it,  as  the  only  remedy  for  the  embarrassments  experienced 
by  their  magistrates  and  courts  of  justice.  They  enter- 
tained no  doubt  of  their  claim  to  low-water  mark,  and 
were  disposed  to  claim  a  common  right  over  the  whole 
river,  or  an  exclusive  one,  to  the  middle  of  it. 

Accordingly,  in  the  early  part  of  the  session  (1799)  on 
leave  granted  to  introduce  a  bill  defining  and  regulating 
privileges,  the  right  of  concurrent  jurisdiction  was  affirmed, 
by  legalizing  the  service  of  process,  civil  and  criminal,  on 
any  river,  or  water  course,  within,  or  bounding  the  Terri- 
tory. That  bill  passed  by  a  unanimous  vote,  in  each 
house,  and  was  approved  by  the  Governor,  with  a  distinct 
understanding,  that  it  asserted  the  right  of  concurrent  juris- 
diction over  the  whole  river.  From  that  time,  the  tribu- 
nals of  the  Territory,  and  afterwards  of  the  State,  sustained 
the  legality  of  arrests  made  on  the  Ohio  river.  Kentucky, 
however,  continued  to  dispute  the  right,  though  no  serious 
effort  was  made  to  resist  it,  for  a  number  of  years ;  but, 
subsequently,  the  opposition  on  the  part  of  that  State,  was 
revived,  and  became  so  serious,  that  the  Legislature  of 
Ohio  passed  a  resolution  requesting  their  Governor  to  cor- 
respond on  the  subject,  with  the  Governor  of  Kentucky,  At 
a  subsequent  session,  the  Legislature  were  informed,  that 
the  Governor  of  that  state  had  declined  holding  any  cor- 
respondence on  the  subject. 

When  that  result  was  communicated,  Mr.  B.  was  a 
member  of  the  House ;  and  having  had  something  to  do 
with  that  matter,  in  the  Territorial  Legislature,  he  deter- 
mined to  give  it  a  thorough  investigation.  Accordingly,  he 
examined  the  entire  legislation  of  Virginia,  in  regard  to  it. 
He  found  that  the  act  passed  in  December,  1789,  authori- 
sing the  district  of  Kentucky  to  form  a  separate  govern- 
ment, was  in  the  form  of  a  compact,  and  set  forth,  dis- 
tinctly, the  terms  and  conditions  on  winch,  and  on  which 
alone,  the  district  should  be  permitted  to  form  a  govern- 
ment for  themselves.     One  of  them  declared,  in  express 


310  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON   THE 

terms,  that  the  State  to  be  formed  in  the  district,  should  neve/ 
claim  the  exclusive  jurisdiction  on  the  Ohio  river;  but  that  it 
should  be  forever  common  to  them  and  to  the  people  and  States  on 
the  opposite  side.  These  conditions  were  agreed  to  by  the 
people  of  Kentucky,  and  a  State  Constitution  was  formed 
in  1792,  containing  a  clause,  that  the  compact  with  the 
State  of  Virginia,  should  constitute  a  part  thereof. 

The  result  of  that  examination  was  communicated  to 
the  Legislature,  and  produced  a  perfect  conviction,  that  the 
right  for  which  they  had  been  attempting  to  negotiate,  was 
secured  to  them,  as  far  as  Kentucky  was  concerned,  by  the 
prudence  and  foresight  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia. 
Since  that  time  there  has  not  been  any  difficulty  with  the 
State,  or  people  of  Kentucky.  A  similar  embarrassment, 
however,  may  arise  with  the  State  of  Virginia,  as  to  our 
right  on  the  river  above  the  mouth  of  Big  Sandy.  But 
judging  from  what  she  has  done,  to  secure  the  jurisdiction 
on  the  river  below  that  point,  it  is  not  presumed  she  will 
ever  desire  to  restrict  it  above. 

It  has  been  heretofore  remarked,  that  the  labor  of  pre- 
paring and  maturing  the  business  of  the  Territorial  Legis- 
lature, rested  on  the  shoulders  of  a  few  individuals.  In 
proof  of  that  remark,  the  Journal  of  the  Legislative  Coun- 
cil shows,  that  during  the  session  of  1799,  Mr.  B.,  a  member 
of  that  body,  prepared  and  reported  the  following  bills,  to 
wit:  a  bill  to  regulate  the  admission  and  practice  of  attor- 
neys at  law:  a  bill  to  confirm  and  give  force  to  certain 
laws  enacted  by  the  Governor  and  Judges :  a  bill  making 
promissory  notes  negotiable :  a  bill  to  authorise  and  regu- 
late arbitrations :  a  bill  to  regulate  the  service  and  return 
of  process,  in  certain  cases:  a  bill  establishing  courts,  for 
the  trial  of  small  causes:  a  bill  to  prevent  trespassing,  by 
cutting  of  timber:  a  bill  providing  for  the  appointment  of 
constables  :  a  bill  defining  privileges,  in  certain  eases  :  a  bill 
to  prevent  the  introduction  of  spirituous  liquors,  into  cer- 
tain  Indian  towns :  a  bill  for  the  appointment  of  general 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  311 

officers,  in  the  militia  of  the  Territory :  a  bill  to  revise  the 
laws  adopted,  or  made,  by  the  Governor  and  Judges :  a  bill 
to  authorise  the  raising  of  money  by  way  of  lottery :  a  bill 
for  the  relief  of  the  poor:  a  bill  repealing  certain  laws  and 
parts  of  laws:  and,  a  bill  for  the  punishment  of  arson. 

He  was  also  appointed  to  prepare  and  report  rules  for 
conducting  the  business  of  the  Legislative  Council,  and  an 
answer  to  the  Governor's  address,  to  the  two  houses,  at  the 
opening  of  the  session;  and  also  to  draft  a  memorial  to 
Congress,  on  behalf  of  purchasers  of  land,  in  the  Miami 
country,  and  a  complimentary  address  to  the  President  of 
the  United  States. 

During  the  first  stage  of  Territorial  government,  from 
1789  to  1799,  the  law  for  the  collection  of  small  debts  sub- 
jected the  inhabitants  to  great  trouble  and  expense ;  and 
sometimes,  to  the  most  oppressive  exactions.  The  coun- 
ties were  large,  and  the  jurisdiction  of  justices,  was  co-ex- 
tensive with  their  limits.  Process  to  collect  a  debt,  of  one 
dollar,  might  be  sent,  and  served,  fifty  miles,  or  more,  from 
the  place  of  its  return ;  and,  in  addition  to  this,  justices 
were  in  the  habit  of  undertaking  the  collection  of  debts,  far 
exceeding  the  amount,  within  their  jurisdiction,  by  dividing 
them  into  small  sums,  on  each  of  which,  they  commenced 
a  suit,  and  allowed  the  constable  his  traveling  fees;  so 
that,  in  many  cases,  the  costs  very  far  exceeded  the  amount 
of  the  original  debt.  To  abate  that  grievance,  the  law 
above  referred  to,  limited  the  jurisdiction  of  justices,  in 
civil  cases,  to  the  townships  in  which  they  severally  resi- 
ded, and  prohibited  them  from  issuing  more  than  one  writ, 
or  summons,  on  the  same  claim. 

The  bill  defining  privileges,  reported  by  Mr.  B.,  protected 
the  whole  community  from  arrest,  on  civil  process,  on  the 
Fourth  Day  of  July,  giving  protection  to  all  classes  of  men, 
while  engaged  in  its  celebration,  and  participating  in  the 
pleasures  and  festivities,  which  the  elder  Adams  predicted, 


312  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

would  distinguish  it,  to  the  end  of  time,  from  all  other  days 
in  the  calendar.  It  is  believed  that  this  was  the  first  legis- 
lative act,  in  the  United  States,  which  hallowed  that 
eventful  day,  and  made  it  a  protected  jubilee  to  every  in- 
dividual in  the  nation.  Since  then,  similar  exemptions 
have  been  enacted  in  several  of  the  States. 

Under  the  first  grade  of  Territorial  government,  the  Gov- 
ernor and  Judges,  in  their  legislative  capacity,  had  taken 
great  liberties  with  the  laws  they  adopted.  In  some  in- 
stances, they  retained  nothing  more  than  the  title  of  the 
adopted  law,  the  body  of  it  being  stricken  out,  and  the  va- 
cancy filled  with  matter  to  suit  themselves.  The  Govern- 
or, as  has  been  before  stated,  remonstrated  against  that 
course ;  and,  after  the  organization  of  the  Legislature,  pre- 
sented the  subject  to  their  consideration,  and  recommended 
such  legislation  in  reference  to  it,  as  they  might  think  ne- 
cessary. In  response  to  that  communication,  the  bill,  giv- 
ing effect  to  those  laws,  was  reported.  Their  validity, 
though  questioned  from  the  beginning,  had  been  acquiesced 
in,  for  reasons  heretofore  stated;  but  it  was  thought  advi- 
sable to  remove  all  doubt,  by  giving  them  the  sanction  of 
the  Legislature. 

The  bill  to  prevent  the  introduction  of  ardent  spirits  into 
the  Indian  towns,  was  passed  at  the  instance  of  the  mis- 
sionaries of  the  church  of  United  Brethren,  who  had  made 
establishments,  under  the  authority  of  Congress,  at  Shaen- 
brun,  Gnadenhutten,  and  Salem,  on  the  Tuscarawas  branch 
of  the  Muskingum  river,  then  in  the  county  of  Washington. 
The  Indians  in  those  settlements,  had  been  Christianized, 
and  had  made  considerable  progress  in  agriculture,  and  the 
arts;  but  when  the  white  population  settled  in  their  neigh- 
borhood, and  began  to  associate  and  trade  with  them, 
whiskey  was  introduced  into  their  towns,  as  a  profitable 
article  of  traffic.  The  effect  it  was  producing,  on  their  in- 
dustry and  moral  habits,  became  alarming,  and  induced 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  313 

the  missionaries  to  apply  to  the  General  Assembly,  for  re- 
lief; who  granted  it  promptly,  to  the  extent  of  the  means  in 
their  power. 

As  was  expected,  the  establishment  of  the  second  grade 
of  government,  made  it  necessary  to  increase  the  taxes,  to 
meet  the  additional  expenditure,  which  it  had  caused.  For 
that  purpose,  provision  was  made  for  the  appointment  of  a 
Territorial  Treasurer,  and  an  Auditor  of  Public  Accounts, 
o  whom  the  management  of  the  fiscal  concerns  of  the  Ter- 
ritory, was  committed. 

As  the  public  debt  increased  faster  than  the  means  of 
payment,  a  resort  was  had  to  the  credit  system.  The  Au- 
ditor was  authorised,  in  payment  of  claims  on  the  Trea- 
sury, to  issue  certificates,  which  were  made  receivable  for 
taxes,  and  passed  current,  at  a  small  discount,  in  the  busi- 
ness transactions  of  the  country.  These  vouchers  were 
denominated  "  Auditor's  Certificates,"  and  were  required  to 
be  cancelled  as  soon  as  redeemed  at  the  Treasury.  Al- 
though they  were  printed  on  common  paper,  in  a  plain 
style,  no  attempt  was  made  to  counterfeit  them.  They  an- 
swered a  useful  purpose,  and,  in  fact,  the  government 
could  not  have  been  sustained  without  them.  The  people 
saw  they  were  necessary,  as  well  as  convenient,  and  no 
effort  was  made  to  undervalue,  or  depreciate  them. 

At  the  time  now  spoken  of,  the  inhabitants  of  the  Terri- 
tory were  few  in  number,  and  scattered  over  an  extensive 
country.  They  were  poor,  and  without  commerce.  All 
their  foreign  supplies  were  obtained  at  a  heavy  expense; 
and  there  was  no  market  for  the  surplus  products  of  their 
small  improvements.  It  is  therefore  matter  of  surprise, 
that  they  were  able  to  sustain  the  expense  of  any  form  of 
government;  and  it  is  evident,  they  could  not  have  done  so, 
without  the  most  rigid  economy,  in  their  personal  and  fam- 
ily expenditures,  as  well  as  in  the  management  of  public 
affairs.  The  officers  of  the  Territory  were  few  in  number, 
and  their  salaries  were  small  in  amount.     The  largest  re- 


314  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ceived  in  the  Territory,  were  those  of  the  Governor  and 
Judges  of  the  General  Court,  which  were  paid  from  the  na- 
tional treasury.  To  form  a  correct  idea  on  this  subject,  it 
must  be  borne  in  mind,  that,  at  the  time  spoken  of,  the  en- 
tire Territory,  from  Pennsylvania  to  the  Mississippi,  and 
from  the  Ohio  to  the  Lakes,  contained  only  five  thousand 
white  males,  of  all  ages.  Of  course,  the  adults,  on  whom 
the  burden  of  government  rested,  were  few  in  number,  as 
well  as  destitute  of  pecuniary  means. 

The  Legislature,  being  anxious  to  encourage  industry 
and  frugality,  and  to  check  idleness  and  intemperance, 
passed  an  act,  authorising  the  appointment  of  guardians, 
to  persons  who  were  wasting  their  estates,  by  excessive 
drinking,  gambling,  idleness,  or  debauchery  of  any  kind ; 
and  declaring,  that  after  such  appointment,  no  sale,  bar- 
gain, or  contract,  made  by  such  person,  should  be  held  valid 
in  law. 

When  the  session  of  1799  was  drawing  to  a  close,  a  joint 
committee  was  appointed  to  report  an  address  from  the 
General  Assembly  to  John  Adams,  President  of  the  United 
States.  An  address  was  accordingly  prepared,  and  report- 
ed to  each  house.  In  the  Council,  it  was  adopted  by  a 
unanimous  vote,  and  in  the  House  of  Representatives  with 
five  dissenting  votes.  At  that  time,  great  unanimity  pre- 
vailed in  the  Territory  on  political  questions ;  while  the 
States  were  rent,  and  almost  torn  asunder,  by  party  strife. 
This  calmness  and  unanimity,  was  ascribable,  principally, 
to  the  fact,  that  the  people  of  the  Territory  had  no  voice 
in  electing  the  officers  of  the  General  Government,  and  the 
Government  had  but  little  patronage  to  distribute  among 
them. 

The  address  to  the  President  was  complimentary,  but 
not  more  so  than  was  just.  It  eulogized  his  talents  and 
patriotism,  and  referred  to  the  great  services  he  had  ren- 
dered the  country  during  the  struggle  for  independence, 
both  in  the  councils  of  the  nation  and  at  foreign  court-.     Jt 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY  315 

alluded,  very  specially  to  the  firmness  with  which  he  re- 
sisted the  effort  of  the  British  commissioners,  during  the 
negotiations  at  Paris,  to  make  the  river  Ohio  the  northern 
boundary  of  the  United  States.*  It  referred  to  his  attach- 
ment to  the  principles  of  the  Constitution — to  his  fidelity 
and  integrity  in  administering  the  government.  It  gave 
him  the  strongest  assurances  of  their  purpose  to  sustain 
and  support  him,  in  the  discharge  of  his  arduous  duties ; 
and  declared  their  conviction  that  those  duties  had  been 
performed  with  impartiality  and  a  single  eye  to  the  pros- 
perity of  the  nation. 


*  When  the  American  and  British  commissioners  were  negotiating  the 
terms  of  the  Treaty  of  peace  at  Paris,  in  1782,  Great  Britain  insisted  on  ma- 
king the  Ohio  river  a  boundary  of  the  United  States.  The  American  com- 
missioners resisted  the  proposition,  principally  on  the  ground  that  the  territory 
north-west  of  that  river  had  been  conquered  by  General  Clarke,  in  1778,  and 
was  then  in  the  occupancy  of  the  troops  of  the  United  States.  The  perti- 
nacity with  which  the  claim  was  insisted  on,  induced  Dr.  Franklin  to  suggest 
to  his  colleagues,  Mr.  Adams  and  Mr.  Jay,  whether  it  would  not  be  better  to 
yield  that  point,  than  to  fail  in  the  main  object — it  being  understood  that  the 
French  government  were  favorable  to  the  claim.  Mr.  Adams  very  promptly 
answered,  "  No  ;"  and  declared  that  sooner  than  yield  the  western  territory, 
he  would  withdraw  from  the  negotiation — return  home,  and  exhort  his  coun- 
trymen to  continue  the  war,  as  long  as  they  could  keep  a  soldier  in  the  field. 
Mr.  Jay  was  equally  determined;  and  Dr.  Franklin  concurred.  It  was  well 
known  that  the  Count  de  Vergennes  had  produced  some  influence  on  the 
mind  of  Dr.  Franklin,  in  favor  of  the  claim.  But  when  the  final  decision  of 
the  American  commissioners,  on  that  point,  was  officially  declared,  that  boun- 
dary was  reluctantly  abandoned. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

Congress  remove  the  Seat  of  Government  to  Chillicothe. — Considered  an 
usurpation  of  power. — Meeting  of  the  Assembly. — Governor's  address. — 
Replies  of  the  two  Houses. — Proceedings  of  the  Assembly. — Law  to  protect 
the  Indians. — Connecticut  Reserve. — Controversy  settled. — Governor  and 
Assembly  differ  in  opinion. — His  term  of  office  about  to  expire. — Power 
of  the  Secretary  to  act,  in  that  case,  denied. — Assembly  prorogued. 

After  the  close  of  the  first  session  of  the  Territorial 
Legislature,  Congress  passed  a  law,  removing  the  seat  of 
government  from  Cincinnati  to  Chillicothe.  That  step  was 
considered,  by  the  most  intelligent  men  in  and  out  of  the 
Legislature,  as  a  manifest  usurpation  of  authority ;  inas- 
much as  the  Ordinance  had  vested  the  entire  legislative 
power  of  the  Territory  in  the  General  Assembly,  which 
then  stood  adjourned  to  meet  at  Cincinnati,  on  the  first 
Monday  in  November,  1800  :  Nevertheless  the  two  Houses, 
in  obedience  to  that  law,  though  they  viewed  it  as  an  arbi- 
trary infringement  on  their  rights,  assembled  at  Chillicothe, 
in  conformity  with  the  order  of  Congress.  The  Governor  met 
them,  and  having  stated  the  measures,  which  in  his  opinion, 
required  legislative  attention,  closed  his  address  with  these 
emphatic  words  : 

"  My  term  of  office,  and  yours,  gentlemen  of  the  House 
of  Representatives,  will  soon  expire.  It  is,  indeed,  very 
uncertain,  whether  I  shall  ever  meet  another  Assembly,  in 
the  character  I  now  hold ;  for,  I  well  know,  that  the  vilest 
calumnies  and  greatest  falsehoods,  are  insidiously  circula- 
ted among  the  people,  with  a  view  to  prevent  it.  While  I 
regret  the  baseness  and  malevolence  of  the  authors,  and  well 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  317 

know,  that  the  laws  have  put  the  means  of  correction,  fully 
in  my  power;  they  have  nothing  to  dread  from  me,  but  the 
contempt  they  justly  merit.  The  remorse  of  their  own  con- 
sciences, will  one  day,  be  punishment  sufficient.  Their  arts 
may,  however,  succeed.  Be  that  as  it  may,  of  this  I  am 
certain — that,  be  my  successor  who  he  may,  he  can  never 
have  the  interest  of  the  people  of  this  Territory,  more  truly 
at  heart,  than  I  have  had  ;  nor  labor  more  assiduously  for 
their  good,  than  I  have  done.  I  am  not  conscious  that  any 
one  act  of  my  administration,  has  been  influenced  by  any 
other  motive,  than  a  sincere  desire,  to  promote  their  wel- 
fare and  happiness." 

To  this  address  each  House  returned  such  a  reply,  as  suited 
its  taste  and  feeling.  The  answer  of  the  Legislative  Coun- 
cil, closed  with  the  following  remarks  : 

"  It  is  with  real  concern  and  indignation,  that  we  view 
the  malicious  attempts  which  have  been  made,  to  asperse 
the  character  of  your  Excellency ;  and  though  the  provisions 
of  the  law  might  subject  the  authors  to  punishment,  yet  we 
agree  with  you,  that  attempts  so  despicable,  and  wicked, 
deserve  no  other  notice  than  contempt.  Believing  that 
your  general  conduct,  as  chief  magistrate,  has  been  dictated 
by  a  pure  desire  to  promote  the  interests  and  welfare  of 
the  people  of  this  Territory,  the  Legislative  Council  feel  it 
a  duty  incumbent  upon  them,  at  this  time,  to  express  their 
confidence  in  your  administration,  and  their  wishes  for  its 
continuance." 

In  the  address  presented  by  the  House  of  Representatives, 
the  following  sentiments  were  contained  : 

"  We  regret,  sir,  that  calumny  and  falsehood,  should  be 
resorted  to,  in  order  to  render  your  administration  unpopu- 
lar, among  the  good  people  of  this  Territory ;  but,  we  trust, 
the  services  you  have  rendered  heretofore,  in  the  cause  of 
liberty  and  your  country,  together  with  the  manifest  purity 
of  your  intentions,  since  you  have  been  entrusted  with  the 
dignified  office  you  now  fill ;  will  be  a  sufficient  shield,  to 


318  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

guard  you  against  the  unprovoked  attacks  of  the  wicked 
and  malevolent." 

In  the  Legislative  Council,  the  reply  to  the  Governor's 
address  was  passed  by  a  unanimous  vote  ;  but  in  the  other 
House,  there  was  an  opposition,  and  the  ayes  and  noes  being 
demanded,  the  vote  stood,  ayes  10,  noes  7. 

It  will  be  recollected,  that  before,  and  at  the  time,  the 
Ordinance  for  the  government  of  the  Northwestern  Terri- 
tory was  made  and  adopted,  the  State  of  Connecticut  had 
a  claim  to  the  jurisdiction  and  soil  of  a  large  tract  of  land, 
situate  on  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  within  the  limits  of 
the  Territory,  then  estimated  to  contain  about  two  millions 
and  a  half  of  acres,  denominated  "  The  Western  Reserve  of 
Connecticut."  That  claim  was  predicated  on  an  averment, 
that  the  charter  of  the  colony,  extended  to  the  Pacific  Ocean ; 
and  that  in  her  relinquishment  of  western  lands  to  Con- 
gress, she  had  specially  reserved  that  strip,  for  her  own  use. 
Fears  had  been  entertained,  that  the  claims  of  that  State, 
adverse  to  those  of  the  United  States,  might  be  attended 
with  unpleasant  results ;  as  the  Territorial  Legislature,  fol- 
lowing in  the  footsteps  of  the  Governor  and  Judges,  in  the 
exercise  of  their  legislative  functions,  had  assumed  jurisdic- 
tion over  the  entire  Territory,  in  conformity  with  the  Ordin- 
ance ;  and  were  enforcing  the  execution  of  their  laws,  by 
their  own  officers  and  judicial  tribunals.  Those  unpleas- 
ant apprehensions,  however,  were  removed,  before  any  col- 
lision took  place,  by  an  agreement  between  that  State  and 
the  United  States ;  executed  in  the  spring  of  1800,  which 
was  communicated,  officially  to  the  Legislature,  in  the  Gov- 
ernor's message.  By  that  arrangement,  the  State  of  Con- 
necticut relinquished  to  the  United  States,  all  right  of  juris- 
diction ;  and  the  United  States  relinquished  to  Connecticut, 
all  right  of  title,  to  the  soil  of  the  disputed  territory. 

Early  in  the  session  the  two  houses  met  for  the  purpose 
of  filling  the  vacancy  in  Congress,  occasioned  by  tin-  resig- 
nation of  Mr.  Harrison,  and  also  to  elect  a  Delegate  for 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  319 

the  next  succeeding  Congressional  term.  The  ballots  hav- 
ing been  taken  and  counted,  in  the  manner  prescribed, 
it  appeared  that  Mr.  McMillan,  of  Hamilton  county,  was 
duly  elected  to  fill  the  vacancy  until  the  4th  day  of  March, 
and  that  Paul  Fearing,  of  Marietta,  was  elected  to  repre- 
sent the  Territory  for  the  two  years  thereafter. 

During  the  session  of  1800,  upwards  of  twenty  laws 
were  passed,  some  of  which  were  of  great  importance,  and 
all  were  supposed  to  be  necessary  for  the  convenience  and 
safety  of  the  inhabitants.  The  law  requiring  the  proprie- 
tors of  towns,  to  cause  the  original  plats  thereof,  together 
with  affidavits  of  their  correctness,  to  be  recorded,  and 
imposing  penalties  for  disobedience,  has  been  of  great  use 
in  adjusting  controverted  claims  to  individual  property  and 
public  franchises. 

The  law  defining  seals  to  be  affixed  to  certain  instru- 
ments of  writing,  was  considered  as  a  dangerous  innova- 
tion on  the  established  law.  It  declared  a  scrawl  made 
with  pen  and  ink  to  be  a  valid  seal  to  all  instruments  of 
writing  requiring  seals,  except  deeds,  wills,  and  bonds,  and 
powers  of  attorney,  for  the  conveyance  of  real  estate. 
After  that  act  had  been  in  operation  a  few  years,  the  sub- 
ject was  again  taken  up  by  the  Legislature,  in  1805,  and 
the  provision  was  extended  to  all  instruments  whatever,  to 
which  seals  were  required  by  law. 

The  law  for  the  maintenance  and  support  of  illegitimate 
children,  which  was  passed  at  that  session,  allowed  the 
mother  of  the  bastard  child  to  be  a  competent  witness  to 
prove  the  person  accused  by  her  to  be  its  father.  That 
feature  of  the  bill  was  considered  dangerous,  as  it  put  it  in 
the  power  of  an  abandoned  woman  to  screen  her  para- 
mour, and  fix  the  penalty  of  his  crime  on  an  innocent  indi- 
vidual, and  also  to  extort  money  from  innocent  persons,  to 
escape  the  consequences  of  being  publicly  though  falsely 
charged.  On  that  account  it  was  opposed  with  some 
warmth.     The  members  who  supported  it,  admitted  that 


320  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

there  were  cases  in  which  it  might  operate  unjustly;  but 
contended,  that  without  the  provision,  the  law,  in  almost 
every  case,  would  prove  a  dead  letter,  and  the  seducer 
escape  punishment.  That  appeal  to  the  sympathy  of  the 
members  prevailed,  and  the  provision  was  retained. 

The  act  regulating  Circuit  Courts  and  allowing  appeals 
from  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  passed  at  the  same  ses- 
sion, contained  a  new  principle,  that  of  permitting  an  issue 
of  fact  after  it  had  been  fully  and  fairly  tried  by  a  jury,  to 
be  taken  up  by  either  party  as  a  matter  of  right,  to  the 
Supreme  Court,  and  tried  a  second  time  on  its  merits,  by 
which  cost  was  accumulated,  and  the  administration  of 
justice,  especially  in  the  collection  of  debts,  greatly  impe- 
ded and  delayed.  For  these  reasons  the  passage  of  the 
bill  was  opposed,  though  unsuccessfully.  It  was  not  long, 
however,  before  all  parties  admitted  that  the  provision 
operated  injuriously ;  yet,  strange  as  it  may  be,  it  was  con- 
tinued in  force  till  1845.  The  writer  of  this  article  was  a 
member  of  the  Legislative  Council,  and  opposed  the  bill, 
in  the  year  1800,  and  has  lived  to  see  it  repudiated  and 
repealed,  after  an  experiment  of  forty-five  years. 

During  the  same  session,  a  joint  committee  was  ap- 
pointed for  the  purpose  of  investigating  the  books  of  the 
Treasurer,  and  the  Auditor  of  Public  Accounts.  That  com- 
mittee having  discharged  the  duty  assigned  them,  reported, 
that  they  found  the  accounts  to  have  been  regularly  kept, 
and  to  correspond  with  the  report  and  exhibits  laid  before 
the  Assembly  at  the  commencement  of  the  session.  They 
also  expressed  an  opinion,  founded  on  reasons  set  forth  in 
their  report,  that  the  revenue  for  the  current  year  would  be 
sufficient  for  the  wants  of  the  Government,  and  that  the 
credit  of  the  Territory  would  be  honorably  maintainec!.  In 
regard  to  the  accounts  of  Rice  Bullock,  the  former  Auditor, 
they  reported,  that  they  found  them  so  inaccurate,  that 
they  were  unable  to  make  a  satisfactory  report,  and  re- 
commended the   appointment  of  Commissioners,  to  take 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  321 

charge  of,  and  report  on  them,  to  the  next  session  of  the 
Legislature.  That  recommendation  was  agreed  to,  and  a 
committee  appointed  accordingly. 

Soon  after  the  organization  of  the  General  Assembly,  in 
1799,  it  was   ascertained   that   an   unhappy  difference  in 
opinion  existed,  between  that  body  and  the  Governor,  on 
the    subject   of   the   division,   and   alteration   of  counties. 
The  Ordinance  provides,  that  the  Governor  shall  proceed, 
from  time  to  time,  as  circumstances  may  require,  to  lay  out 
the  parts  of  the  district  in  which  the  Indian  title  shall  have 
been   extinguished  into   counties   and   townships,  subject, 
however,  to  such  alterations  as  may  thereafter  be  made  by 
the  Legislature.     Under  that  provision  it  was  insisted  by 
the  General  Assembly,  that  after  the  Governor  had  laid  out 
the  country  into  counties  and  townships,  as  he  had  already 
done,  under  the  first  grade  of  Government,  it  was  compe- 
tent for  them  to  pass   laws,  altering,  dividing,   and  multi- 
plying, them  at  their  pleasure,  to  be  submitted  to  the  Gov- 
ernor for  his   approbation.     They  insisted   that,  when  the 
Territory  had  been  divided  into  counties  by  the  Governor, 
his  exclusive  power  was  exhausted,   and  any  alterations 
thereafter  required,  were  to  be  made  by  the  Legislature, 
with  his   assent.     They  contended  that  a  power  to  lay  out 
new  counties,  where  none  existed  before,  did  not  carry  with 
it  a  right  to  alter  or  divide  them  after  they  had  been  laid 
out,  and  especially  so  when  the  exercise  of  the  latter  power 
was  otherwise  expressly  disposed  of.     On  the  other  hand, 
the  Governor  alledged,  that  the  General  Assembly  had  no 
right  to  meddle  with  that  subject,  affirming,  that  the  whole 
power  in  regard  to  it  was  vested  in  himself.     They  per- 
sisted, however,  in  their  claim  of  right,  and  passed  a  num- 
ber of  bills   altering  the  boundaries   of  some  of  the  coun- 
ties, and  dividing  others  so  as  to  establish  new  ones,  and 
sent  them  to  the  Governor  for  his   approval.     He   refused 
to  consider  them,  assigning  as  his  reason  that  the  Assembly 
had  transcended  their  powers  by  attempting  to  act  on  the 
21 


322  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

subject,  and  did  not  even  return  them  to  the  House  in 
which  they  originated. 

Anxious  to  remove  that  difficulty,  early  in  the  session  of 
1800,  the  Assembly  sent  to  the  Governor  a  joint  address, 
stating  the  grounds  on  which  they  claimed  the  right  of 
legislating  on  the  subject;  and  respectfully  requesting  him 
to  re-consider  the  decision  he  had  made.  To  that  address 
he  returned  an  elaborate  reply,  re-affirming  his  exclusive 
right,  and  attempting  to  support  it,  by  reasons  more  plausi- 
ble than  solid ;  some  of  which  were  by  no  means  compli- 
mentary to  the  judgment  or  intelligence  of  the  Assembly. 

So  far  as  pride  of  opinion  was  involved,  the  Assembly 
had  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  their  construction  of 
the  Ordinance  in  regard  to  the  power  in  question,  was 
sanctioned  by  Congress,  without  any  effort  on  their  part  to 
produce  that  result. 

It  was  the  duty  of  the  Governor  to  report  his  official  pro- 
ceedings, from  time  to  time,  to  the  Secretary  of  State  of  the 
United  States,  to  be  submitted  to  Congress  for  their  ap- 
proval. Among  other  communications,  a  statement  of  the 
new  counties  laid  out  and  established  by  him  subsequent 
to  the  organization  of  the  General  Assembly,  was  trans- 
mitted. When  that  document  was  taken  up  in  the  Senate 
for  consideration,  it  was  objected  that  the  Governor  had 
exhausted  the  power  given  him  by  the  Ordinance,  to  lay 
out  the  Territory  into  counties  and  townships,  before  the 
counties  in  question  had  been  formed,  and  that  the  entire 
power,  on  that  subject,  was  then  vested  exclusively  in 
the  Territorial  Legislature.  The  Senate  concurred  in  that 
opinion,  and  of  course  disaffirmed  the  proceedings  of  the 
Governor. 

The  result  was,  that  the  inhabitants  of  those  districts  were 
very  seriously  disappointed,  and,  during  the  temporary  ab- 
sence of  the  Governor,  addressed  the  Secretary  of  the  Ter- 
ritory, Charles  Wylling  Byrd,  asking  for  relief.  The  Secre- 
tary advised  them,  in  substance,  that  his  powers  were  limit- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  333 

ed,  and  that  he  could  not  grant  their  request;  but  that  he 
would  embrace  the  first  opportunity  of  presenting  their 
case  to  the  Legislature,  and  would  exert  his  influence  to 
give  it  effect.  It  so  happened,  however,  that  before  the  day 
appointed  for  the  next  session  of  the  Territorial  Legislature 
arrived,  a  Convention  had  been  elected,  and  the  Legisla- 
ture did  not  assemble.  In  confirmation  of  these  facts,  the 
reader  is  referred  to  the  Appendix,  I. 

From  the  first  organization  of  Government  in  the  Territo- 
ry all  elections  had  been  held  viva  voce.  In  the  Governor's 
address  to  the  Legislature,  he  invited  their  attention  to  that 
subject;  and  suggested  a  variety  of  reasons,  why,  in  his 
opinion,  the  people  would  be  able  to  give  their  votes  with 
more  freedom  and  independence,  if  they  were  permitted  to 
do  it,  by  written  or  printed  ballots ;  not  to  be  opened  or 
inspected,  at  the  time  of  their  presentation.  One  of  the 
chief  inducements  offered  to  make  the  proposed  change 
was,  that  tenants,  and  persons  under  pecuniary  liabilities, 
could  not  vote  openly,  according  to  their  own  judgment, 
without  encountering  the  hazard  of  persecution.  After 
having  deliberately  examined  that  subject,  the  impression 
on  the  mind  of  the  Legislature  was,  that  past  experience 
had  not  indicated  the  necessity  of  the  proposed  change; 
and  that  the  Executive  recommendation  ought  not  to  be 
adopted.  But  immediately  after  the  establishment  of  the 
State  Government,  the  mode  of  conducting  elections  was 
changed.  The  manly,  independent  practice  of  pronouncing 
audibly  and  fearlessly,  the  names  of  the  candidates  voted 
for,  was  abandoned,  and  the  secrecy  of  the  ballot-box  in- 
troduced in  its  stead. 

At  the  same  time,  the  Governor  invited  the  attention  of 
the  Assembly  to  the  condition  of  the  Indians,  and  requested 
that  measures  might  be  devised  for  their  protection  and 
safety.  He  observed,  that  irrespective  of  the  principles  of 
religion  and  justice,  it  was  the  interest,  and  should  be  the 
policy  of  the  United  States  to  be  at  peace  with  them;  but 


324  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

that  could  not  continue  to  be  the  case,  if  the  treaties  exist- 
ing between  them  and  the  government  were  broken  with 
impunity,  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  Territory.  He  referred 
to  the  well  known  fact,  that  while  the  white  men  loudly 
complained  of  every  injury  committed  by  the  Indians,  how- 
ever trifling,  and  demanded  immediate  reparation,  they 
were  daily  perpetrating  against  them  injuries  and  wrongs 
of  the  most  provoking  and  atrocious  nature;  for  which  the 
perpetrators  had  not  been  brought  to  justice. 

It  was  universally  known,  that  many  of  those  unfortu- 
nate people  had  been  plundered  and  abused  with  im- 
punity. Among  other  things,  the  Governor  stated,  that  it 
would  be  criminal  in  him  to  conceal  the  fact  that  the 
number  of  those  unfortunate  people,  who  had  been  mur- 
dered since  the  peace  of  Greenville,  was  sufficient  to  pro- 
duce serious  alarm  for  the  consequences.  He  added  fur- 
ther, that  a  late  attempt  to  bring  to  punishment  a  white 
man  who  had  killed  two  adults  of  the  Six  Nations,  and 
wounded  two  of  their  children,  in  Trumbull  county,  proved 
abortive.  Though  the  perpetration  of  the  homicide  was 
clearly  proved;  and  it  appeared  manifestly  to  have  been 
committed  with  deliberate  malice,  the  prisoner  was  acquit- 
ted. That  occurrence,  together  with  other  facts  of  a  similar 
character,  known  to  some  of  the  members,  induced  the 
Legislature  to  pass  an  act,  "providing  for  the  trial  of  hom- 
icide committed  on  Indians,"  which,  as  far  as  was  practica- 
ble, gave  the  remedy  requested.  Among  other  provisions, 
it  authorised  the  Governor  to  order  special  Courts  of  Oyer 
and  Terminer,  to  be  held  by  the  Judges  of  the  General 
Court,  for  the  trial  of  such  cases;  and,  if  necessary,  to 
grant  a  change  of  venue.  That  law,  and  the  one  passed 
at  the  preceding  session,  to  protect  those  unhappy  people 
against  the  destructive  efFects  of  intemperance,  exhausted 
the  means  in  the  power  of  the  Assembly  to  guard  their 
rights,  and  secure  to  their  persons  the  protection  guaranteed 
by  the  treaty  of  1794. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  325 

It  has  been  stated,  in  the  commencement  of  this  chapter, 
that  although  the  Legislature,  by  common  consent,  assem- 
bled at  Chillicothe,  yet  it  was  under  a  conviction  that  the 
law  of  Congress,  so  far  as  it  professed  to  remove  the  seat  of 
government,  was  an  infringement  on  their  legislative  fran- 
chise. Under  that  impression,  the  Council,  at  an  early 
period  of  the  session,  passed  a  bill  designating  the  places  of 
holding  the  General  Assembly;  and  sent  it  to  the  House  of 
Representatives,  for  their  concurrence.  It  directed  the  ses- 
sions of  the  Assembly,  to  be  held  in  rotation,  at  Marietta, 
Cincinnati,  and  Chillicothe,  in  the  order  in  which  they  were 
named.  When  it  was  taken  up  in  the  House,  it  was  the 
unanimous  opinion  of  that  body,  that  they  possessed  the 
power  necessary  to  pass  it,  and  change  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment; but  there  was  a  diversity  of  opinion,  as  to  the  place 
to  which  the  removal  ought  to  be  made.  A  majority  of  the 
members  were  opposed  to  the  provision  in  the  bill,  passed 
by  the  Council,  and,  on  motion,  it  was  stricken  out.  That 
being  done,  a  majority  could  not  be  obtained,  in  favor  of  a 
substitute,  and  the  bill,  of  course,  was  lost. 

The  petition  of  Lucy  Petit,  of  Marietta,  was  presented  in 
the  House  of  Representatives,  praying  for  the  passing  of  an 
act,  to  divorce  her  from  her  husband,  John  G.  Petit,  then, 
and  for  several  years  before,  a  resident  of  France.  The 
evidence  presented  a  strong  case  for  relief;  and  the  Com- 
mittee, to  whom  the  petition  and  papers  were  referred, 
reported  a  bill  in  conformity  with  the  prayer  of  the  peti- 
tioner, which  passed  both  Houses  and  became  a  law. 

On  the  2nd  of  December,  the  Governor  informed  the 
Assembly,  by  a  written  message,  "  that  on  Thursday,  the 
9th  of  the  month,  an  end  must  be  put  to  the  session  of  the 
Legislature  ;  as  on  that  day  his  term  of  office  would  expire ; 
and  it  was  not  a  case  provided  for  by  law,  in  which  the 
place  of  the  Governor,  could  be  supplied  by  the  Secretary." 

On  that  subject,  there  was  a  diversity  of  opinion.  The 
general  sentiment  of  the  Assembly  was,  that,   on  a  fair 


326  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

interpretation  of  the  act  of  Congress,  of  August  1789,  the 
Secretary  of  the  Territory  was  fully  authorised  to  discharge 
the  duties  of  the  Governor,  after  the  expiration  of  his  term 
of  office.  The  provision  is  in  these  words:  "In  case  of  the 
death,  removal,  resignation,  or  necessary  absence  of  the 
Governor,  from  the  Territory,  the  Secretary  thereof  shall  be, 
and  he  is  hereby,  authorised  and  required,  to  execute  the 
powers,  and  perform  all  the  duties  of  the  Governor,  during 
the  vacancy,  occasioned  by  the  removal,  resignation,  or 
necessary  absence  of  the  Governor."  The  simple  question 
was,  whether,  according  to  the  spirit  and  true  intent  of  the 
foregoing  provision,  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  Governor,  by 
reason  of  the  expiration  of  the  term  of  his  appointment,  was 
not  such  a  removal  from  the  office,  as  authorised  the  Secre- 
tary, to  assume  the  executive  functions. 

The  Legislature  believed  it  to  be  immaterial,  whether 
the  Governor  was  removed  by  an  executive  act,  or  by  the 
expiration  of  his  term  of  office.  In  either  case,  they  con- 
sidered it  a  removal  of  such  a  character,  as  was  contempla- 
ted by  Congress,  when  they  passed  the  act  of  August,  1789. 
It  appeared  to  them,  that  the  vacancy  in  the  latter  case, 
was  one  of  the  most  obvious  occurrences,  for  which  the  law 
was  intended  to  provide.  That  the  President  might  omit 
to  nominate,  or  the  Senate,  in  consequence  of  a  diversity 
of  opinion,  or  otherwise,  might  delay  final  action,  on  the 
nomination  of  a  successor  to  a  Governor  in  commission,  till 
after  the  office  should  become  vacant,  must  have  been  so 
distinctly,  in  the  mind  of  the  Committee,  who  prepared  the 
bill,  as  to  preclude  the  supposition,  that  that  emergency  was 
overlooked.  But  as  they  knew  the  Governor  had  the  power 
to  prorogue  them,  at  his  pleasure,  be  the  facts  as  they  might ; 
they  believed  it  would  be  useless,  to  make  an  effort  to 
change  his  opinion.  The  message  was  therefore  received, 
without  remonstrance  or  reply  of  any  kind ;  although  there 
were  then  several  matters  of  much  interest,  requiring  legis- 
lative action;  which  they  knew,  must  be  continued  over,  in 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  327 

consequence  of  the  ground  assumed  by  his  Excellency. 
Under  that  impression,  when  the  Dth  of  December  came, 
they  assembled  in  the  chamber  of  the  House  of  Represen- 
tatives, and  were  prorogued  without  day. 

It  was  somewhat  remarkable  that  the  opinion  of  the  Gov- 
ernor, and  his  purpose  to  adjourn  the  Legislature,  were  con- 
cealed in  his  own  bosom,  till  it  was  too  late  to  confer  with 
the  Secretary  of  the  Territory ;  who  was  then  absent  from 
the  seat  of  Government.  As  it  was  known,  that  his  opin- 
ion of  his  own  powers,  coincided  with  that  of  the  Legisla- 
ture, it  was  not  doubted,  that,  if  such  a  conference  could 
have  been  had,  he  would  have  taken  the  responsibility  of 
giving  notice,  at  once,  that  he  would  issue  his  proclamation, 
bearing  date  on  the  day,  next  after  the  expiration  of  the 
Governors  term  of  office,  re-assembling  the  two  Houses, 
forthwith,  for  the  dispatch  of  business,  before  the  members 
should  separate,  and  return  to  their  respective  homes.  By 
that  measure  the  sitting  of  the  Assembly  would  have  been 
continued,  till  the  public  business,  then  pending  was  dis- 
posed of. 

It  was  the  prevailing  opinion,  that  the  Governor  ought  to 
have  given  notice  of  his  view,  of  the  powers  of  the  Secre- 
tary, and  of  his  intention  to  prorogue  the  Legislature,  in 
his  address  at  the  opening  of  the  session.  It  was  strongly 
insinuated,  that  he  withheld  the  information,  for  the  express 
purpose,  of  preventing  the  interference  of  the  Secretary, 
till  it  would  be  too  late  to  accomplish  the  object.  Many  of 
his  best  friends  were  apprehensive,  that  such  a  motive, 
might  have  had  an  improper  influence  on  his  mind. 

Soon  after  the  Governor  had  prorogued  the  Legislature, 
he  was  re-appointed  by  President  Adams ;  and  about  the 
same  time  Solomon  Sibley,  one  of  the  members  of  the  lower 
House,  from  Detroit,  was  nominated  and  appointed,  to  fill 
the  seat  in  the  Council,  vacated  by  the  exclusion  of  Mr. 
Vanderburgh,  in  consequence  of  the  division  of  the  Ter- 
ritory. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

Meeting  of  the  General  Assembly. — Their  proceedings. — Mob  in  Chillicothe. 
Its  object. — Omission  of  the  police  to  interfere. — Seat  of  Government 
removed. 

On  the  24th  of  November,  1801,  the  General  Assembly 
met  at  Chillicothe,  in  conformity  with  the  proclamation  of 
the  Governor,  and  entered  on  the  business  of  their  third 
session,  or  more  correctly,  the  first  session  of  the  second 
legislative  term.  The  Governor,  as  he  was  wont  to  do, 
met  them  in  the  hall  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  and 
addressed  them  at  some  length  on  the  different  subjects 
which  he  recommended  to  their  consideration. 

In  regard  to  the  militia,  and  the  law  of  the  preceding 
session,  which  provided  for  their  organization  and  disci- 
pline, he  observed,  that  a  considerable  number  of  the 
people  called  Quakers,  had  lately  become  inhabitants  of 
the  Territory,  and  that  more  might  be  expected  to  follow 
them ;  that  the  general  character  of  the  people  of  that  pro- 
fession, for  industry,  sobriety,  and  good  morals,  was  gen- 
erally known  and  acknowledged,  and  was  such  as  ren- 
dered them  a  valuable  acquisition  to  any  country ;  but  that 
their  religious  principles  forbade  them  to  take  arms. 

He  further  remarked,  that  to  impose  fines  on  people, 
principled  against  arms,  for  not  attending  musters,  estab- 
lished for  the  purpose  of  acquiring  skill  in  the  use  of  them, 
seemed  to  be  a  species  of  persecution ;  yet  he  thought  it 
reasonable,  that  if  they  were  exempted  from  that  duty,  they 
should  render  something  to  the  community  as  an  equiva- 
lent; and  expressed  an  opinion,  that  they  would  willingly 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  399 

pay  a  small  sum  of  money,  annually,  for  the  exemption; 
and  he  recommended  the  subject  very  decidedly  to  the  con- 
sideration of  the  Assembly. 

Notwithstanding'  much  time  had  boen  consumed  on  that 
subject,  at  the  preceding  session,  and  although  it  was  gen- 
erally believed,  that  the  render  of  any  thing,  however 
trifling,  as  an  equivalent,  or  substitute  for  the  performance 
of  militia  duty,  would  be  quite  as  repugnant  to  their  feel- 
ings and  principles,  as  the  performance  of  the  duty  itself; 
yet  an  act  supplementary  to  that  of  the  preceding  session 
was  passed,  providing  that  if  any  person  should  produce  to 
the  commanding  officer  of  the  company,  within  the  limits 
of  which  he  resided,  a  certificate  under  the  hand  and  seal 
of  a  magistrate,  residing  within  his  county,  stating  that 
such  person  had  duly  taken  an  oath  or  affirmation  that  he 
was  conscientiously  scrupulous  of  bearing  arms,  or  per- 
forming military  duty,  and  should  pay  to  the  said  officer 
one  dollar  and  twenty-five  cents,  he  should  be  exempt  from 
militia  duty  for  one  year,  and  for  as  long,  thereafter,  as  he 
should  continue,  yearly,  to  render  that  equivalent. 

On  the  subject  of  exports  from  the  Territory,  the  Gov- 
ernor remarked,  that  it  was  of  the  first  importance,  that 
articles  sent  to  foreign  markets,  should  be  of  the  best 
quality ;  and  that  the  quality  should  be  ascertained  to  the 
purchaser,  by  some  public  stamp,  in  which  he  could  place 
confidence.  At  that  time  there  was  a  very  small  amount 
of  produce  exported  from  the  Territory;  yet  as  population 
was  rapidly  increasing,  and  agricultural  improvements 
were  multiplying,  and  extending,  the  subject  was  held  to 
be  of  high  importance;  and  a  committee  was  appointed  to 
prepare  and  report  a  bill,  "to  provide  for  the  inspection  of 
certain  articles."  Such  a  bill  was  drafted  with  care,  re- 
ported to  the  Legislature,  passed  by  both  Houses,  and,  on 
the  9th  of  January,  1802,  approved  by  the  Governor. 

There  being  no  Courts  of  Chancery  in  the  Territory,  in 
which  the  specific  performance  of  contracts  could  be  en- 


330  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

forced,  to  obviate  that  difficulty,  a  law  was  reported  and 
passed,  authorising  the  Orphan's  Court,  on  petition,  in  cer- 
tain cases  named,  and  in  the  manner  specified,  to  make 
and  record  orders  requiring  contracts  to  be  executed ;  and 
designating,  by  whom,  and  in  what  manner  it  should  be 
done.  The  same  defect  in  the  judicial  system  of  the  Ter- 
ritory rendered  it  difficult  for  mortgagees  to  avail  them- 
selves of  the  full  benefit  of  their  securities.  For  the  pur- 
pose of  granting  relief  in  such  cases,  an  act  was  passed, 
"providing  for  the  recovery  of  money  secured  by  mort- 
gage." The  process  authorised,  was  the  writ  of  scire  facias, 
and  the  mode  of  proceeding  was  designated  specifically, 
and  so  guarded  as  to  form  a  safe,  convenient  remedy. 

In  the  partition  of  real  estate,  difficulties  were  found  to 
exist,  arising  from  the  same  cause — the  want  of  Chancery 
power — to  remedy  which,  as  effectually  as  possible,  a  law 
was  prepared  and  reported,  by  which  joint  tenants,  tenants 
in  common,  or  coparceners,  of  any  estate  in  lands,  tene- 
ments, or  hereditaments,  within  the  Territory,  held  or 
claimed  by  devise,  descent,  patent,  deed,  covenant,  or 
other  contract,  might  be  compelled  to  make  or  suffer  par- 
tition. The  mode  of  proceeding  was  by  petition;  either  in 
the  General  Court,  or  Court  of  Common  Pleas.  The  pow- 
ers of  the  Court,  the  mode  of  proceeding,  and  the  relief 
to  be  granted,  were  specifically  provided,  and  set  forth  in 
the  body  of  the  act,  and  were  so  guarded  as  to  secure,  as 
far  as  practicable,  the  object  in  view,  with  as  little  ex- 
pense and  delay  as  was  consistent  with  the  safe  and  correct 
administration  of  justice.  After  it  had  been  carefully  re- 
vised and  amended,  in  the  two  Houses,  it  was  passed,  and 
approved  by  the  Governor ;  and  was  found  in  practice,  to 
be  very  beneficial.  With  some  modification  of  its  det?ils,  it 
was  continued  in  force  many  years,  by  the  State  Legislature. 

Another  subject  of  some  importance,  which  occupied  the 
attention  of  the  Assembly,  during  their  sitting,  was  the  dis- 
tribution of  insolvent  estates.     An  act  was  passed,  on  that 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  331 

subject,  recognizing  the  just  and  equitable  principle,  of  divi- 
ding the  assets  of  deceased  persons,  among  all  their  credi- 
tors, in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  their  several  claims, 
regardless  of  their  character,  or  dignity,  giving  a  preference 
only  to  money  due  for  taxes,  or  to  the  United  States,  or  to 
the  Territory,  or  county,  or  for  the  last  sickness  of  the  de- 
ceased. The  mode  provided  for  ascertaining,  and  settling 
the  debts,  was,  by  a  board  of  Commissioners,  appointed  by 
the  court. 

A  law  was  also  passed,  making  it  the  duty  of  sheriffs,  on 
demand  made  for  that  purpose,  by  the  plaintiff  in  any  suit, 
in  which  a  bail  bond  had  been,  or  should  be  taken,  to  assign 
the  same  to  the  plaintiff,  under  his  hand  and  seal ;  and 
authorising  the  assignee,  to  sustain  an  action  thereon,  in 
his  own  name,  subject  to  such  equitable  rules,  as  the  court 
might  think  necessary,  to  prevent  injustice,  or  extortion. 
Separate  acts  were  passed,  during  the  session,  to  incorpo- 
rate the  towns  of  Cincinnati,  Chillicothe  and  Detroit ;  and 
also  to  establish  an  University  in  the  town  of  Athens ;  on 
the  land  granted  by  Congress,  for  that  purpose,  to  Sargent, 
Cutler  &  Co. 

An  act  was  also  passed,  declaring  the  assent  of  the  Ter- 
ritory, to  an  alteration  in  the  Ordinance,  for  the  govern- 
ment thereof;  the  object  of  which  was,  to  effect  a  change 
in  the  boundaries  of  the  three  States,  first  to  be  formed 
therein.  After  the  passage  of  that  act,  a  remonstrance,  in 
the  nature  of  a  protest,  was  signed  by  seven  members  of 
the  House  of  Representatives,  and  entered  on  the  Journal. 
One  of  the  chief  objections  to  that  measure  was,  that,  if 
carried  into  effect,  the  change  of  boundary  proposed,  would 
retard  the  establishment  of  a  State  government,  in  the  eas- 
tern division.  That  objection  was  urged  with  much  energy, 
by  the  opposers  of  the  measure ;  and  had  great  weight,  with 
the  new  administration  of  the  general  government,  then 
just  coming  into  power,  under  the  auspices  of  Mr.  Jefferson ; 
who  relied  confidently,  on  increasing  the  numerical  strength 


332  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

of  his  party  by  the  formation  and  admission  of  the  proposed 
State,  into  the  Union.  The  consequence  was,  that  when 
the  law  was  laid  before  Congress,  at  their  next  session,  for 
their  approval,  they  refused  to  sanction  it ;  and  as  a  matter 
of  course  the  object  of  it  was  lost. 

The  friends  of  the  change  admitted  that  it  might  keep 
back  the  formation  of  a  State  government,  in  the  eastern 
division,  a  short  period,  probably  a  year — certainly  not 
more ;  but,  that  any  inconvenience,  which  might  result  from 
the  delay,  would  be  more  than  compensated  for,  by  its  ben- 
eficial tendencies.  It  was,  however,  impossible  to  change 
the  opinion  of  those  who  had  set  their  hearts  on  the  imme- 
diate establishment  of  a  State  government. 

During  the  same  session,  two  petitions  were  presented, 
praying  that  an  act  might  be  passed,  declaratory  of  the  true 
intent  and  meaning  of  that  part  of  the  Ordinance,  which  re- 
lates to  slavery,  and  involuntary  servitude,  so  as  to  au- 
thorise and  require  the  courts  of  judicature,  to  compel  a 
specific  performance  of  covenants,  or  indentures,  entered 
into  for  a  valuable  consideration.  As  it  was  apparent  that 
the  object  of  the  petitions,  was  to  introduce  a  species  of 
limited  slavery,  by  the  instrumentality  of  contracts,  or  in- 
dentures, contrary  to  the  spirit  and  design  of  the  Ordinance, 
they  were  laid  on  the  table,  with  an  understanding  that 
they  should  not  again  be  taken  up. 

The  determination  to  exclude,  for  ever,  from  the  limits  of 
the  Territory,  the  degrading  relation  of  master  and  slave, 
seemed  to  be  universal  among  the  inhabitants,  and  was 
responded  to  by  every  member  of  the  Assembly.  The  feel- 
ing which  was  manifested  on  that  occasion,  and  on  another, 
similar  in  character,  at  a  preceding  session  of  the  Assem- 
bly, when  the  officers  of  the  "Virginia  line  on  Continental 
establishment,"  asked  permission  to  remove  to  the  Terri- 
tory, and  settle,  with  their  slaves,  on  their  bounty  lands ; 
afforded  the  most  satisfactory  evidence,  in  the  infancy  of 
the  western  settlements,  of  a  resolution  to  maintain  the 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  333 

Ordinance;  by  resisting  every  attempt  that  might  be  made, 
in  any  form,  to  introduce  involuntary  servitude  into  the 
Territory,  or  the  States  to  be  formed  within  it.  As  a  num- 
ber of  the  members  of  the  State  Convention  which  formed 
the  Constitution,  had  been  members  of  the  Territorial 
Legislature,  when  those  petitions  were  presented  and 
rejected,  it  was  evident  that  what  had  transpired  on  those 
occasions,  had  great  influence  in  leading  the  Convention  to 
adopt  the  provision  found  in  the  second  section  of  the  8th 
article  of  the  Constitution,  relating  to  indentures  made  by 
persons  of  color. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  session,  a  message  wras  receiv- 
ed from  the  Governor,  calling  the  attention  of  the  Legis- 
lature to  certain  riotous  proceedings,  on  two  successive 
nights,  by  an  assemblage  of  citizens  of  Chillicothe,  by 
whom  the  peace  of  the  town  had  been  disturbed,  and  the 
personal  safety  of  some  of  the  members  of  the  Legislature 
endangered.  It  was  represented,  that  a  portion  of  the  re- 
spectable citizens,  had  given  countenance  to  the  mob ;  and 
that  no  efforts  were  made  by  the  police,  or  the  citizens,  to 
suppress  it,  or  punish  those  who  were  engaged  in  it.  The 
object  of  the  movement  was  evidently  to  insult  the  Gov- 
ernor, and  do  personal  violence  to  some  of  the  members  of 
the  Legislature.  Mr.  Scheifflein,  a  member  from  Wayne 
county,  was  one  of  the  persons  whom  it  was  intended  to 
insult.  He  had  spoken  very  freely  on  the  subject  of  the  re- 
moval of  the  seat  of  government  from  Cincinnati,  and  of  the 
supposed  agency  of  the  people  of  Chillicothe,  in  bringing  it 
about,  and  had,  thereby,  incurred  their  ill  will.  Other 
members  had  also  given  offence,  by  similar  observations ; 
and  it  was  the  manifest  design  of  the  instigators  of  the 
movement,  to  punish  them  for  so  doing. 

Mr.  Scheifrlein,  on  that  occasion,  behaved  with  great 
firmness.  After  the  rioters  had  forced  the  outer  door  of 
the  house  in  which  he  and  the  Governor  boarded,  he  met 
them  in  the  passage  with  a  brace  of  loaded  pistols,  and 


334  BURNET'S  NOTES. 

drove  them  back  into  the  street.  Those  proceedings  were 
continued  two  succeeding  nights,  but  terminated  without 
serious  injury,  to  any  individual,  on  either  side.  When  the 
disturbance  was  over,  it  was  a  mortifying  reflection  that 
the  Legislature  had  no  power  to  interfere,  in  any  manner, 
with  the  rioters,  or  with  the  officers,  who  omitted  to  dis- 
charge their  duty.  With  a  view,  however,  of  guarding 
against  a  similar  outrage,  and  of  expressing  their  feelings 
on  the  occasion,  they  passed  a  law  removing  the  seat  of 
government  from  Chillicothe,  and  establishing  it  at  Cincin- 
nati. The  Legislature  having  passed  thirty  laws,  adjourn- 
ed on  the  23d  of  January,  1802,  to  meet  at  Cincinnati,  on 
the  fourth  Monday  of  November  following. 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

Population  of  the  Eastern  Division  in  1802. — Steps  to  obtain  a  State  Gov- 
ernment.— Application  to  Congress  for  permission  to  call  a  Convention. — 
Permission  given  on  conditions. — Their  oppressive  character. — Opposition 
to  the  measure. — On  what  grounds. — Right  to  tax  public  lands  relinquished. 
— Loss  sustained  by  it. —  State  of  parties. —  Note. —  Excitement  at  Detroit. 
— Opposition  to  the  law  for  erecting  a  new  State. — Correspondence  on  the 
subject. —  Note. —  The  friends  of  a  State  Government  become  the  major- 
ity.— The  harmony  formerly  existing  broken  up. — Causes  of  the  change. — « 
Origin    of   party  spirit. — Ambitious  aspirants. — Their  misrepresentations. 

Soon  after  the  adjournment  of  the  General  Assembly,  in 
January,  1802,  a  census  was  taken  in  the  eastern  division 
of  the  Territory,  which  was  found  to  contain  forty-five  thou- 
sand and  twenty-eight  persons  of  both  sexes;  after  which,  an 
application  was  made  to  Congress,  for  a  law,  authorising 
the  inhabitants  of  that  division  to  call  a  convention,  and 
form  a  Constitution,  preparatory  to  the  establishment  of  a 
State  government.  Although,  by  the  Ordinance,  sixty 
thousand  inhabitants  were  required,  to  entitle  the  district 
to  become  a  State,  as  a  matter  of  right;  yet  the  law  was 
passed,  a  convention  elected,  a  constitution  formed,  and 
the  district  declared  to  be  an  independent  State,  and  ad- 
mitted into  the  Union;  professedly,  on  an  equal  footing 
with  the  original  States. 

That,  however,  was  not  the  case ;  as  the  original  States 
were  subject  to  no  restriction,  or  limitation  of  power,  other 
than  that  contained  in  the  federal  constitution;  but  the 
new  State  of  Ohio  was  admitted  with  restrictions,  and  on 
conditions  as  degrading  to  the  character,  as  they  were  in- 
jurious to  the  future  prosperity  of  the  inhabitants.     One  of 


336  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

them  was,  that  Congress  should  have  the  right  of  disposing 
of  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Territory,  lying  north  of  the  line 
drawn  east  and  west,  through  the  southern  extreme  of 
Lake  Michigan,  by  establishing  a  Territorial  government 
therein,  whenever  they  might  see  proper;  although  the 
Ordinance  declared,  in  express  terms,  that  that  Territory 
should  remain  a  part  of  the  State,  formed  on  the  south  of 
it,  till  its  inhabitants  amounted  to  sixty  thousand,  which 
was  not  the  case  until  the  year  1835,  when  she  formed  a 
State  Constitution,  and  was  admitted  into  the  Union. 

As  a  matter  of  course,  that  entire  district  would  have 
remained  a  part  of  the  State  of  Ohio,  subject  to  her  laws, 
and  liable  to  defray  a  just  proportion  of  the  expenses  of 
the  government,  during  the  period  intervening  between  the 
years  1802  and  1835;  but  in  consequence  of  the  foregoing 
concession,  it  was  immediately  detached  from  Ohio,  and 
united  to  Indiana;  but  was  soon  after  formed  into  a  sepa- 
rate Territory,  and  continued  so  till  it  became  a  State; 
thus  depriving  the  good  people  of  Ohio,  of  all  the  ben- 
efits they  would  have  derived  from  the  population  and 
wealth  of  that  rich  and  extensive  district,  during  the  period 
of  thirty-three  years. 

There  is  a  fact,  connected  with  this  part  of  the  subject, 
which  may  cast  on  it  some  light,  and  possibly  disclose  the 
motive  which  induced  Congress  to  propose,  and  the  Con- 
vention to  accept,  this  restriction  on  the  constitutional 
rights  of  Ohio.  It  was  universally  known,  that  the  people 
of  Detroit  and  the  district  connected  with  it,  were  unitedly, 
and  warmly  opposed  to  the  change  of  government  then 
contemplated.  They  were  anxious  to  continue  as  a  Terri- 
tory ;  and  whenever  a  State  government  should  be  formed 
on  their  south,  to  remain  united  with  it,  till  their  own  pop- 
ulation should  amount  to  sixty  thousand.  There  were, 
therefore,  strong  reasons  to  apprehend,  that  if  they  should 
become  a  part  of  the  new  State,  the  terms  proposed  by 
Congress,  as  the  consideration  of  the  privilege  asked  for, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  337 

might  be  rejected  by  the  Convention,  and  the  object  of  the 
movement  thereby  defeated. 

The  inhabitants  of  that  part  of  the  Territory,  with  scarcely 
one  exception,  were  also  decidedly  opposed  in  politics  to  the 
party  which  had  just  possessed  themselves  of  the  admin- 
istration of  the  general  government.  They  were  also  nu- 
merous ;  their  settlements,  extending  from  the  River  Raisin 
to  Detroit,  and  thence  to  Lake  St.  Clair,  were  densely  pop- 
ulated, compared  with  the  settlements  in  the  centre,  and 
on  the  south  of  the  Territory.  It  was,  therefore,  almost 
certain,  that,  if  they  were  united  with  the  opposers  of  the 
proposed  Constitution,  in  the  Southern  part  of  the  district, 
they  would  reject  the  law  of  Congress,  and  prevent  the 
formation  of  a  State  government.  But  if  this  should  not 
be  the  case,  still  they  would  become  citizens  of  the  new 
State,  which,  with  the  aid  of  their  numbers  and  influence, 
would  most  probably  be  placed  in  the  ranks  of  opposition 
to  the  administration  of  the  general  government,  by  the 
men  then  in  power.  It  is  known  to  the  writer,  that  these 
facts  existed,  whatever  might  have  been  their  influence 
on  the  political  leaders  of  the  day.* 


*  As  soon  as  it  was  ascertained  that  the  law  authorising  the  establishment 
of  a  State  government,  in  the  eastern  district,  excluded  the  people  of  Detroit 
and  its  vicinity,  they  remonstrated  against  it,  with  much  warmth,  and  claimed 
the  right  of  becoming  a  part  of  the  State,  and  of  remaining  so,  until  their 
numbers  should  entitle  them  to  a  State  government  of  their  own.  They  com- 
plained of  the  exclusion,  as  unconstitutional,  and  oppressive  ;  and  declared 
their  determination  not  to  submit  to  it.  Mr.  Burnet,  who  was  personally  in- 
timate with  most  of  the  leading  men  in  those  settlements,  was  written  to,  on 
the  subject,  in  language  of  bitter  complaint,  by  some  of  them,  who  requested 
his  advice,  as  to  the  course  they  ought  to  pursue,  to  secure  the  right  they 
claimed,  under  the  Ordinance.  [See  Appendix  H.]  Their  letters  were 
promptly  answered,  with  the  temper  and  feeling  which  the  political  state  of 
the  country  was  calculated  to  excite.  He  coincided  with  them  in  opinion,  on 
the  question  of  their  right.  He  did  not  believe  that  Congress  could  separate 
them,  constitutionally,  from  the  new  State,  then  to  be  formed,  without  their 
consent. 

It  was  not  long,  however,  before  the  friends  of  the  new  State  obtained  their 
22 


338  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Another  condition  was,  that  "the  State  should  provide 
by  an  ordinance,  irrevocable,  without  the  consent  of  the 
United  States,  that  every  and  each  tract  of  land  sold  by 
Congress,  from  and  after  the  30th  day  of  June  next,  should 
be  and  remain  exempt  from  any  tax,  laid  by  order,  or 
under  the  authority  of  the  State,  whether  for  State,  county, 
township,  or  any  other  purpose  whatever,  for  the  term  of 
five  years,  from,  and  after  the  day  of  sale." 

It  was  the  opinion  of  the  persons  opposed  to  the  forma- 
tion of  a  State  government,  at  that  period,  that  this  condi- 
tion was  intended  to  imply  an  admission,  that  anterior  to 
the  sale,  or  while  the  land  remained  the  property  of  gov- 
ernment, it  could  not  be  subject  to  taxation  by  State  laws. 
That  construction,  erroneous  as  it  was,  prevailed,  and  by  a 
tacit  acquiescence,  the  tax  laws  of  Ohio  were  never  extend- 
ed to  the  public  domain ;  and  while  every  freeholder  was 
severely  taxed,  to  improve  the  State,  and  enhance  the 
value  of  all  the  lands  within  it;  the  general  government, 
the  great  land  monopolizer,  contributed  nothing  to  the 
accomplishment  of  that  object.  In  a  subsequent  chapter, 
an  attempt  will  be  made  to  show,  that  this  construction  of 


confidence,  and  convinced  them,  that  the  separation  they  were  opposing, 
would  benefit  them  very  greatly;  as  it  would  make  it  necessary  for  Congress 
to  establish,  immediately,  a  separate  Territorial  government  at  Detroit;  fol- 
lowed by  the  creation  of  many  valuable  offices;  all  of  which  they  would  fill, 
as  a  matter  of  course,  if  they  came  out  promptly  and  decidedly  in  favor  of  the 
measure,  on  the  plan  proposed  by  Congress.  Those  appeals  had  their  desired 
effect,  and  convinced  them,  that  the  separation  they  had  so  violently  resisted, 
was,  in  all  respects,  a  measure  greatly  to  be  desired.  Having  taken  this  new 
view  of  the  subject,  for  the  purpose  of  making  their  peace  at  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment, and  casting  their  sins  on  the  shoulders  of  others,  they  put  the  letters 
of  Mr.  B.  into  the  hands  of  Mr.  Jefferson.  He  showed  them  to  Senator 
Smith,  of  Ohio,  who  then  stood  high  in  his  confidence,  and  intimated  a  pur- 
pose of  having  them  noticed,  as  being  of  a  seditious  character.  Mr.  Smith, 
who  was  a  personal  friend  of  the  writer,  and  intimately  acquainted  with  the 
history  of  the  transaction,  besought  him  to  let  them  pass,  unnoticed;  which  he 
reluctantly  consented  to  do,  paying  a  compliment  to  the  pen  of  the  writer,  at 
the  expense  of  his  patriotism. 


NORTII.WESTERN  TERRITORY.  339 

State  rights,  in  regard  to  the  taxing  power,  was  wholly 
incorrect. 

Taking  it  now  for  granted,  that,  if  no  compact  had  been 
entered  into  with  the  United  States,  they  would  have  held 
their  property  in  Ohio,  precisely  as  they  did  in  the  original 
States,  subject  to  State  laws  for  the  collection  of  taxes; 
and  connecting  that  assumption  with  the  fact,  that  more 
than  four-fifths  of  the  area  of  the  State,  was  the  property 
of  Congress,  a  calculation  may  be  made  sufficiently  accu- 
rate to  show  that  the  people  of  Ohio  suffered  an  immense 
loss,  by  giving  up  that  portion  of  their  sovereignty,  which 
authorised  the  State  to  extend  her  tax  laws  to  every  spe- 
cies of  property,  within  her  limits,  without  enquiring  to 
whom  it  belonged,  or  by  whom  it  was  claimed. 

The  prevailing  opinion  of  the  most  intelligent  part  of  the 
community  was,  that  the  evils  of  a  Territorial  form  of 
government,  were  more  imaginary  than  real — that,  on  a 
fair  estimate,  the  advantages  exceeded  the  disadvantages; 
and  that  it  was  better  for  the  people  to  endure  the  incon- 
veniences complained  of,  whether  real  or  imaginary,  a  little 
longer,  and  remain  as  they  were,  till  their  numbers  would 
give  them,  as  a  right,  what  they  were  praying  for  as  a 
favor.  One  or  two  years,  at  most,  would  have  placed 
them  on  that  commanding  ground,  and  brought  them  into 
the  Union,  in  reality  as  well  as  in  name,  on  an  equal  foot- 
ing with  the  original  States. 

It  may  be  fairly  questioned  whether  the  State  has  been 
benefited  a  single  cent,  by  the  consideration  received  for 
the  concessions  made  in  the  compact.  All  parties  admit 
that  the  three  per  cent,  fund,  for  the  opening  of  roads,  has 
produced  no  permanent  benefit.  The  saline  lands  have 
not  yielded  more  than  a  fair  remuneration,  for  the  expense 
and  trouble  they  have  occasioned.  The  school  lands, 
which  are  admitted  to  be  of  great  value,  had  been  pre- 
viously granted,  and  would  have  been  claimed,  as  a  matter 
of  right,  under  pre-existing  ordinances  of  Congress^  which 


340  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

declared,  that  in  disposing  of  the  public  lands,  one  section 
in  each  township  in  the  Territory,  should  be  given  for  the 
use  of  schools. 

As  early  as  May,  1785,  an  ordinance  was  passed,  provi- 
ding "that  there  shall  be  reserved  the  lot  number  sixteen, 
in  every  township,  for  the  maintenance  of  public  schools, 
within  the  said  township."  The  ordinance  of  July  1787,  on 
the  same  subject  declares,  "that  the  lot  number  sixteen,  in 
each  township,  or  fractional  part  of  a  township,  shall  be 
given  perpetually,  for  the  purpose  contained  therein," 
(which  was  for  the  use  of  schools.)  There  was  also  an 
ordinance  promising  a  grant  of  two  entire  townships  for 
the  endowment  of  a  University,  to  any  persons  who  might 
become  purchasers  of  two  millions  of  acres.  Those  ordi- 
nances extended  to  all  the  lands  belonging  to  Congress. 
They  were  not  repealed,  and  could  not  be,  without  a  vio- 
lation of  public  faith,  as  they  were  in  the  nature  of  a 
contract. 

These  ordinances  were  passed  before  the  settlement  of 
the  Territory  began,  and  were  held  out  as  inducements  to 
emigrants,  to  encounter  the  perils  and  hardships  of  reclaim- 
ing and  settling  a  wilderness.  It  was  at  that  time  univer- 
sally known,  that  these  donations  had  been  confirmed,  to 
the  Ohio  Company,  and  to  the  Miami  purchasers ;  and  that 
the  Territorial  Legislature,  before  the  subject  of  a  State  gov- 
ernment was  agitated,  had  claimed  them,  and  instructed 
their  Delegate,  "  that  inasmuch  as  Congress  had  promised, 
that  section  sixteen,  in  each  township,  should  be  granted 
for  the  use  of  schools,  and  section  number  twenty-nine, 
for  the  support  of  religion,  throughout  the  Territory,  he 
should  use  his  endeavors,  to  procure  a  law  to  be  passed, 
vesting  in  them  the  title  to  those  sections,  for  the  uses  for 
which  they  were  originally  promised." 

The  sacrifices  made  by  the  pioneers  which  gave  to  the 
public  domain  its  entire  value,  and  without  which  it  would 
have  been  useless  to  the  government  as  well  as  to  indi- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  341 

viduals,  were  an  ample  consideration  for  the  grant.  After 
that  price  had  been  paid,  involving  the  loss  of  many  lives, 
and  great  personal  sufferings,  which  can  be  realized  only 
by  those  who  endured  them,  it  cannot  be  admitted  that 
Congress  would  have  violated  their  solemn  engagements. 
From  this  view  of  the  subject  it  is  evident,  that  in  regard 
to  the  school  lands,  the  compact  made  with  the  Convention, 
confirmed  to  the  State  merely  what  had  been  previously 
guarantied.  It  should  be  noted  here,  that  by  accepting  the 
compact,  the  Convention  tacitly  relinquished  their  right  to 
section  twenty-nine,  throughout  the  Territory,  which  had 
been  solemnly  set  apart,  by  ordinance,  under  the  old  Con- 
federation, for  the  support  of  religion,  and  were  then  held 
and  enjoyed  for  that  purpose,  by  the  people  in  the  Miami 
purchase,  and  in  the  grant  to  Sargent,  Cutler  &  Company. 
In  every  point  of  view,  therefore,  in  which  the  compact 
can  be  regarded,  the  grants  from  the  general  government 
to  the  State,  were  merely  nominal,  while  the  concessions 
extorted  from  the  Convention  were  of  incalculable  value.* 


*  During  this  political  struggle,  the  persons  who  were  most  active  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  change  of  government,  and  who  were  at  first  a  large  majority  of 
the  inhabitants,  soon  became  a  minority.  Impressions  were  made  on  the  popu- 
lar mind,  that  a  plan  had  been  formed  to  perpetuate  the  colonial  system,  with 
a  view  of  continuing  the  influence  of  a  few  individuals,  in  the  councils  of  the 
general  government,  and  in  the  management  of  the  affairs  of  the  Territory. 
Those  allegations  had  no  foundation  in  truth;  yet  as  they  acted  on  the  suspi- 
cion and  the  prejudice  of  the  uninformed,  who  are  the  most  numerous  portion 
of  every  community,  they  produced  their  intended  effect. 

The  human  family,  with  but  few  exceptions,  are  more  disposed  to  give  cre- 
dence to  slander  and  accusation,  without  evidence,  than  to  believe  a  good  re- 
port, however  well  it  may  be  corroborated.  With  such  feelings  and  propen- 
sities to  operate  on,  it  was  not  difficult  for  the  reformers  to  monopolize  public 
confidence;  but  in  the  accomplishment  of  that  object,  it  is  not  intended  to  say, 
that  they  deviated  farther  from  truth,  than  is  usual  with  political  leaders,  at 
the  present  day;  nor  is  such  an  averment  required,  for  the  purposes  here  in- 
tended. The  spirit  displayed  in  the  political  strife  of  the  present  day,  may  be 
cited,  to  illustrate  that  which  existed  in  1802.  The  principal  difference  is,  that 
then,  the  population  of  the  country  was  estimated  by  hundreds;  now,  by  hun- 
dreds of  thousands. 


342  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

At  the  time  it  was  first  proposed,  to  go  into  a  State 
government,  it  was  believed  to  be  premature,  by  most  of  the 
intelligent  citizens  of  the  Territory ;  and  when  the  act  of 
Congress  was  passed,  containing  the  conditions,  to  be  sub- 
mitted to  the  Convention,  they  were  opposed,  among  other 
reasons,  because  they  seemed  to  cover  much  more,  than 
appeared  on  the  surface.  Those  who  were  in  favor  of  ac- 
cepting them,  professed  to  be  influenced,  by  the  disabilities 

When  the  proposition  was  made,  in  1800,  for  a  change  of  government, 
party  spirit  was  scarcely  known  in  the  Territory.  The  election  of  the  elder 
Adams,  had  just  met  with  general  approbation;  and  resolutions  had  been  pass- 
ed, at  popular  meetings,  to  sustain  his  administration,  against  the  encroach- 
ments of  the  French  government,  which  then  threatened  the  peace  of  the 
nation.  The  troop  of  cavalry,  in  Cincinnati,  commanded  by  Captain  Findlay, 
in  which  the  writer  of  this  note  had  the  honor  of  being  a  private,  presented  a 
flattering  address  to  the  President,  tendering  their  services  to  the  government, 
whenever  it  should  see  proper  to  call  them  out.  Similar  offers  were  made 
from  different  parts  of  the  Western  country;  and  in  fact,  there  seemed  to  be 
but  one  sentiment  pervading  the  minds  of  the  people.  Only  four  individuals, 
in  Cincinnati  and  its  vicinity,  are  now  remembered,  who  then  advocated  the 
election  of  Mr.  Jefferson,  against  Mr.  Adams — these  were  Major  David  Zeig- 
ler,  William  Henry  Harrison,  William  McMillan,  and  John  Smith. 

The  exciting  contest,  which  agitated  the  States,  during  that  election,  was 
not  felt  in  the  Territory.  The  mass  of  the  people  who  inhabited  the  West, 
were  calm  and  unmoved;  and  four-fifths  of  them,  were  entirely  reconciled  to 
the  election  of  Mr.  Adams.  One  of  the  most  influential  men  in  the  country, 
who  stood  at  the  head  of  the  Miami  settlement,  declared,  in  a  promiscuous 
company  in  the  Court  room,  that  "  when  he  was  convinced,  that  skill  in  paint- 
ing the  beauties  of  a  flower,  or  in  dissecting  the  wing  of  a  butterfly,  qualified 
a  man  for  the  duties  of  the  Presidential  chair,  he  would  vote  for  Mr.  Jefferson;" 
yet  when  that  gentleman  was  elected,  four  years  after,  he  became  one  of  his 
devoted  supporters. 

Unfortunately,  the  political  calm  which  pervaded  the  Territory,  prior  to  the 
second  session  of  the  General  Assembly,  was  of  short  duration.  Very  soon 
after  the  plan  was  formed  to  establish  a  State  government,  the  efforts  and  in- 
fluence of  the  party  advocating  that  measure,  succeeded  in  producing  a  high 
degree  of  excitement.  The  attention  of  the  peoplo  was  directed  to  the  rights 
and  privileges  enjoyed  by  the  citizens  of  the  States;  which  were  put  in  con- 
trast with  the  restrictions  and  disabilities  imposed  on  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Territory.  The  discrepancy  was  palpable;  but  no  serious  injury  had  resulted 
from  it.  Nevertheless,  the  people  became  convinced  that  their  rights  were 
unnecessarily  withheld,  for  the  benefit  of  a  few  favorites  of  the  General  Gov- 
ernment, although  there  was  not  the  least  foundation  in  truth  for  the  assertion. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  343 

contained  in  the  Ordinance,  for  the  Government  of  the  Ter- 
ritory ;  and  by  the  assumption  of  the  fact,  that  the  State, 
when  formed,  would  be  too  feeble  to  resist  the  will  of  Con- 
gress, or  to  prevent  that  body  from  carrying  into  effect 
their  own  construction  of  the  act  of  cession,  and  of  the  Or- 
dinance of  1787.  Those  who  thought  with  the  minority, 
admitted  that  the  inhabitants  were  bound  by  the  general 
provisions  of  the  Ordinance,  as  long  as  the  Territorial  gov- 
ernment continued;  and  it  was  conceded,  that,  during  that 
period,  they  could  not  tax,  or  in  any  other  way  interfere, 
with  the  public  lands. 

It  was  contended,  that  Congress,  under  the  old  confedera- 
tion, did  not  possess  the  power  of  extending  her  legislation, 
to  any  of  the  States  of  the  Union ;  that  they  were  not  ves- 
ted with  any  such  authority,  and  could  not  deprive  the  peo- 
ple of  rights,  which  belonged  to  them,  as  organized  commu- 
nities. It  was  admitted,  very  generally,  that  they  owned 
the  soil,  and  might  protect  their  right,  to  the  primary  dispo- 
sal of  it;  but  that  they  could  not,  by  any  act  of  their  own, 
exempt  it  from  the  common  liabilities  of  the  lands  of  indi- 
viduals. It  was  contended,  that  the  Legislature  of  a  sove- 
reign State,  necessarily  possessed  the  power  of  taxing  all 
property  within  its  boundaries,  without  enquiring  to  whom 
it  belonged ;  that  if  the  State  of  Virginia,  in  her  act  of  ces- 
sion, had  reserved  for  her  own  use,  the  fee  of  any  particu- 
lar tract  of  the  land  ceded,  having  granted  the  entire  juris- 
diction, she  must  have  held  it  subject  to  the  taxing  power 
of  the  State,  in  which  it  might  lie :  and,  of  course  that  her 
grantee  could  not  claim  an  exemption,  from  the  same  lia- 
bility. It  was  also  contended  that,  whatever  might  be  the 
authority  of  the  Ordinance,  while  the  Territory  remained  a 
colony,  it  could  not  destroy  the  express  provision,  in  the 
act  of  cession,  that  the  States  to  be  formed  in  the  ceded 
Territory  "  should  have  the  same  rights  of  sovereignty,  free- 
dom, and  independence,  as  the  other  States." 


344  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

It  was  believed,  that  the  inhabitants  of  the  district,  which 
was  one  of  the  divisions  of  the  ceded  Territory,  had  rights  in 
the  trust,  created  by  the  act  of  cession — that  the  enlarged 
power  of  the  general  government,  under  the  federal  Consti- 
tution, could  not  affect  the  State  of  Ohio,  more  than  it  did 
the  old  States  ;  and,  consequently,  that  she  possessed  every 
attribute  of  sovereignty  retained  by  them,  and  to  the  same 
extent.  It  was  contended  that  Congress  had  no  check  on 
the  legislation  of  any  State,  further  than  had  been  expressly 
given,  by  the  Constitution — that  her  own  power  of  taxa- 
tion was  delegated  and  limited — that  she  could  not  check, 
or  restrict  the  taxing  power  of  the  States ;  further  than  was 
expressly  authorised  by  the  federal  Constitution,  which 
gave  her  no  such  power  in  regard  to  lands,  whether  they 
were  claimed  by  herself,  or  by  others. 

The  only  clause  in  the  Constitution,  which  has  a  bearing 
on  this  subject,  is  that  which  provides,  "that  Congress  shall 
have  power  to  dispose  of,  and  make  all  needful  rules  and 
regulations  respecting  the  Territory,  or  other  property  be- 
longing to  the  United  States."  Some  portion  of  the  minor- 
ity contended,  that  this  grant  of  power,  as  to  Ohio,  termin- 
ated at  the  formation  of  her  State  government — that  so 
much  of  the  ceded  lands  in  the  eastern  district,  as  had  not 
been  disposed  of,  before  the  admission  of  Ohio  into  the 
Union,  vested  in  her  the  moment  that  admission  took  place. 
They  held,  that  the  rights  of  the  State,  created  by  the  author- 
ity of  the  deed  of  cession,  could  not  be  affected  by  the  Con- 
stitution, subsequently  adopted;  and,  consequently,  that  her 
claim  to  the  fee  of  all  the  unsold  lands,  was  not  impaired 
by  it.  From  that  opinion,  the  minority  generally  dissented. 
They  believed,  that  all  the  States  formed  or  to  be  formed, 
were  equally  affected  by  the  powers,  given  to  the  general 
government;  one  of  which  was,  that  they  might  dispose  of, 
and,  consequently,  might  own,  the  Territory,  or  other  prop- 
erty, belonging  to   them.      It  was  issisted,  however,  that 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  345 

they  owned  and  held  it,  as  individuals  do,  subject  to  the 
constitutional  legislation  of  the  State. 

No  reason  can  be  assigned,  why  the  federal  Convention 
inserted  the  above  clause,  in  the  Constitution  they  reported, 
unless  on  the  supposition,  that  without  it,  the  fee  in  the  soil 
of  the  Territory,  would  vest  in  the  new  States,  as  soon  as 
they  should  be  formed.  If  they  had  believed  that  Congress, 
under  the  old  confederation,  could  hold  real  estate,  within  the 
limits  of  a  sovereign  State ;  and  that  the  cession  by  Virginia, 
vested  them  with  a  title  that  would  survive  the  formation 
of  State  governments,  in  the  Territory,  the  clause  was  alto- 
gether useless.  It  would  have  been  asking  the  States,  to 
cede  to  them,  what  they  before  possessed. 

But  it  is  very  evident,  that  in  the  opinion  of  the  Federal 
Convention,  the  title  to  the  land  in  the  Territory,  unsold  at 
the  time  of  the  formation  of  the  State  governments,  would 
vest  in  the  States,  within  whose  limits  it  might  be,  unless 
the  right  of  Congress  was  secured,  and  perpetuated,  by 
a  provision  to  that  effect,  in  the  Constitution  they  were 
then  forming.  At  that  time,  it  was,  and  is  still  the  opinion 
of  the  writer,  and  of  those  who  acted  with  him,  that  the 
Constitution  secured  the  title  to  Congress;  but  it  was  not 
admitted,  that  the  naked  right  which  it  gave  to  own,  regu- 
late, and  dispose  of  property,  carried  with  it  an  exemption 
from  the  operation  of  the  general  laws  of  the  State  in  which 
it  might  lie.  Every  citizen  wrho  is  vested  with  a  fee  simple 
in  land,  has  the  same  right  to  own,  regulate,  and  dispose 
of  it;  but  who  ever  dreamt  that  on  that  account  he  held  it 
exempt  from  the  operation  of  the  revenue  laws  of  the 
State? 

Almost  every  mode  of  raising  revenue,  by  indirect  taxa- 
tion, had  been  given  up  by  the  States,  to  the  general  gov- 
ernment; in  consequence  of  which  they  were  left  dependent, 
in  a  great  measure,  on  a  land  tax  for  their  support.  The 
framers  of  the  Constitution  knew,  that  this  would  be  the 
result;  and  that  a  direct  tax  on  land,  would,  from  necessity, 


346  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

be  levied,  in  most  of  the  States  of  the  Union,  if  not  in  all; 
and  most  certainly,  in  the  new  ones.  The  inference  from 
these  considerations  seems  to  be,  that,  if  the  government 
expected,  not  only  to  retain  the  fee  of  the  land,  but  to  hold 
it  exempt  from  the  revenue  laws  of  the  States,  they  would 
have  so  provided  in  the  new  Constitution.  The  insertion 
of  the  one,  and  the  omission  of  the  other,  shows  their 
intention,  and  proves  very  clearly,  that  their  object  was  to 
protect  their  title  only,  and  that  being  guarantied,  they 
were  willing  to  submit  to  the  same  legislation,  to  which 
all  other  proprietors  were  liable ;  believing,  no  doubt,  that 
it  would  be  in  their  power  to  dispose  of  the  greatest  and 
most  valuable  portion  of  the  lands,  before  the  time  arrived 
for  the  establishment  of  the  States,  provided  for  in  the  act 
of  cession,  and  in  the  Ordinance. 

If  the  federal  Convention  believed,  that  the  power  con 
tained  in  the  deed  of  cession  authorising  Congress  to  man- 
age and  sell  the  right  of  soil  in  the  ceded  Territory,  would 
have  passed,  from  the  old  confederation  to  the  new  federal 
government,  and  would  have  continued  in  it,  after  the 
establishment  of  new  States,  the  clause  introduced  by 
them  into  the  Constitution,  granting  that  right,  was  super- 
fluous :  but  if  the  concession  was  necessary,  and  was  in- 
tended, not  only  to  secure  the  title  to  the  land,  but  to  ex- 
empt it  from  the  operation  of  the  revenue  laws  of  the 
States,  it  would  have  been  expressly  so  stated. 

As  a  further  argument,  that  the  national  Convention  did 
not  believe,  that  the  United  States  could  acquire,  or  hold 
real  estate  within  the  limits  of  any  of  the  States,  much  less 
hold  it  exempt  from  the  action  of  State  laws,  without  an 
express  grant  for  that  purpose ;  reference  was  had  to  the 
provision  in  the  8th  section  of  the  first  article  of  th'^  Con- 
stitution; and  especially  to  that  clause,  which  authorised 
Congress  to  obtain,  by  cession,  from  particular  States,  a 
district  not  exceeding  ten  miles  square,  and  to  exercise  in- 
clusive jurisdiction  over  it;  and  also  to  exercise  like,  author- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  347 

ity  over  all  places  purchased  for  the  erection  of  forts,  etc., 
by  the  consent  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  in  which  the 
same  should  be. 

This  and  the  preceding  extract,  it  was  believed,  mani- 
fested, very  conclusively,  the  view  of  the  Convention  of 
1787,  on  this  subject;  and  the  inference  drawn  from  them 
was,  that  the  general  government  could  neither  acquire,  or 
hold,  title  to  real  estate,  within  the  limits  of  any  State, 
without  an  express  grant  of  power  for  that  purpose.  The 
phraseology  of  the  last  extract  is  very  peculiar.  The  first 
branch  of  it  limits  the  right  of  receiving  concessions  to  a 
quantity  not  exceeding  ten  miles  square,  and  the  second  is 
confined  to  places  purchased  for  specified  objects,  with  the 
consent  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  in  which  they  lie. 
It  may  here  be  asked,  why  were  these  specified,  restricted 
rights  conceded  to  Congress,  if  they  wrould  have  possessed 
them  without  such  a  concession?  If  they  could  not  hold 
property  in  any  State,  on  any  terms,  without  the  consent 
of  that  State,  how  could  they,  not  only  hold  it,  but  hold  it, 
exempt  from  her  general  laws,  without  a  similar  consent? 

The  foregoing  remarks  present  a  concise  view  of  the 
grounds  on  which  the  minority,  in  1802,  maintained  their 
opinion,  in  favor  of  the  taxing  power  of  the  new  State.  A 
few  condensed  observations  on  the  then  existing  state  of 
parties  in  the  Territory,  will  not  here  be  out  of  place,  or 
uninteresting. 

From  what  has  been  already  said,  it  will  be  taken  fo  r 
granted,  that  the  people  were  divided  in  sentiment — a 
majority,  however,  had  declared  in  favor  of  the  proposed 
change  of  government.  The  feelings  and  passions  on 
both  sides  were  highly  excited;  much  personal  rancor  was 
indulged  —  the  arguments  advanced  by  the  minority  were 
ridiculed;  they  were  declared  to  be  deceptive,  and  those 
who  advanced  them  were  branded  as  aristocrats,  and  ene- 
mies to  the  people.  The  purity  of  their  motives  was  ques- 
tioned, and  their  patriotism  and  fidelity  to  the  interests  of 


348  BURNET'S  NOTES   ON  THE 

the  Territory,  were  impeached.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
minority  alledged,  that  their  opponents  were  actuated  by 
personal  considerations  —  that  popularity  and  office  were 
the  objects  of  their  pursuit,  and  that  they  were  bent  on 
gratifying  their  ambition,  and  accomplishing  their  purposes, 
at  the  sacrifice  of  the  best  interests  of  the  community. 

It  is  a  natural  conclusion  that  such  a  state  of  feeling 
was  calculated  to  produce  any  thing  rather  than  confidence 
and  harmony.  The  fact  was,  that  between  those  who  had 
been  warm  personal  friends,  enmity  was  produced,  which 
continued  for  years;  and,  in  some  cases,  till  it  was  ter- 
minated by  the  death  of  the  parties.  Passing  over  the 
numerous  and  bitter  criminations  and  recriminations,  pro- 
duced by  the  excited  contest,  the  grounds  on  which  these 
parties  severally  placed  themselves,  may  be  stated  in  a 
few  words. 

On  the  one  side  it  was  alledged,  that  the  existing  gov- 
ernment was  anti-republican  —  that  the  inhabitants  did 
not  enjoy  the  political  rights  which  belonged  to  freemen  — 
that  neither  the  Governor,  the  Judges  of  the  General  Court, 
nor  the  Legislative  Council,  were,  in  any  form,  amenable  to 
the  people — that  the  power  of  appointing  to  office,  held 
by  Congress,  was  dangerous — that  it  had  been  abused — 
that  the  Governor  controlled  the  will  of  the  Representa- 
tives of  the  people,  and  that  there  was  no  remedy  for  these 
evils,  but  a  radical  change  of  government. 

On  the  other  hand  it  was  contended,  that  notwithstand- 
ing those  allegations  were  technically  true,  yet  they  pro- 
duced but  little,  if  any,  injury  in  practice  —  that  they  were 
the  unavoidable  result  of  the  plan  adopted  for  the  settle- 
ment of  the  Territory,  which  was  originally  admitted  to  be 
wise,  judicious,  and  safe  —  that  the  objections  to  the  form 
of  government  were  theoretical  defects,  rather  than  practi- 
cal evils — that  the  exercise  of  the  appointing  power,  as 
far  as  it  was  held  by  Congress,  was  fully  compensated  lor, 
by  the  payment  of  the  salaries  of  all  the  officers   whom 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  349 

they  appointed  —  that  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  were 
too  few  and  too  poor  to  bear  the  expense  of  a  State  gov- 
ernment—  that  their  numbers  were  rapidly  increasing  — 
that  in  two  years,  at  most,  the  district  would  have  a  popu- 
lation, which  would  entitle  it,  as  a  matter  of  right,  to 
become  a  State,  without  conditions  or  restrictions,  and  that 
it  was  better  to  endure  the  inconveniences  complained  of, 
till  the  time  should  arrive,  when  the  proposed  change 
would  be  a  matter  of  right,  and  the  people  better  prepared 
to  meet  the  expenses  of  the  change. 

These  were  the  leading  views  of  the  contending  parties 
of  that  day,  and  when  the  movements  to  which  they  led 
are  calmly  reviewed,  by  one  who  participated  largely  in 
them,  it  will  not  be  difficult  to  account  for  all  that  trans- 
pired. Such  a  retrospect  will  show  that  there  was  an  un- 
reasonable warmth,  and  jealousy  of  motive,  on  both  sides. 
The  fact,  however,  can  not  be  yielded,  that  the  interests  of 
all  concerned,  would  have  been  greatly  advanced,  if  the 
formation  of  a  State  government  had  been  deferred.  The 
pecuniary  and  other  benefits  of  the  Territorial  government, 
during  the  short  time  of  its  proposed  continuance,  would 
have  far  overbalanced  the  inconveniences  complained  of; 
and  the  sacrifices  submitted  to,  by  assenting  to  the  com- 
pact, would  have  been  avoided.  The  contest,  however,  is 
over,  and,  of  those  who  were  engaged  in  it,  there  is  but 
here  and  there  a  survivor  to  tell  the  tale !  The  actors  in 
those  agitating  scenes,  are  almost  all  in  their  graves ;  and 
whatever  of  abuse,  or  reproach,  may  have  been  cast  by 
either  party,  on  the  other,  is  now  covered  by  the  mantle 
of  oblivion. 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

Details  of  the  State  Convention.— Its  members.— The  formation  of  the  Con- 
stitution.—The  question  of  Slavery.— The  Northern  boundary.— Refusal 
to  submit  the  Constitution  to  the  people. — Reflections. 

In  a  former  chapter,  a  few  general  remarks  were  made, 
relating  to  the  Convention  which  formed  the  Constitution 
of  Ohio,  and  the  privileges  guarantied  to  the  new  States,  by 
the  act  of  cession.  It  is  proposed  now,  to  refer  to  these 
subjects  more  in  detail. 

It  is  a  fact,  worthy  of  some  notice,  that  those  who  advo- 
cated the  immediate  formation  of  a  State  government,  were 
unwilling  to  refer  the  decision  of  that  question  to  the  Legis- 
lature of  the  Territory,  or  to  take  the  opinion  of  the  inhab- 
itants, whether  a  Convention  should  be  called,  or  not.  As 
the  safer  way  to  accomplish  their  purpose,  they  petitioned 
Congress  to  take  the  power  into  their  own  hands,  and 
order  a  Convention,  without  consulting  either  the  Legisla- 
ture, or  the  people  of  the  district. 

The  application  of  those  individuals,  unauthorised  as  it 
was,  by  any  legitimate  authority  recognised  in  the  district, 
was  sustained,  and  Congress  proceeded,  forthwith,  to  pass 
a  law,  not  only  authorising,  but,  in  pretty  plain  terms, 
urging  the  people  of  the  eastern  division  of  the  Territory 
to  form  a  Constitution  and  State  government.  That  law 
prescribed  the  boundaries  of  the  State,  fixed  the  number 
of  members  of  which  the  Convention  should  consist,  and 
apportioned  the  number  to  be  chosen  by  each  county.  It 
also  changed  the  qualifications  of  electors,  prescribed  by 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  351 

the  Ordinance,  and  appointed  the  time  and  place  of  holding 
the  election. 

Its  provisions,  except  so  far  as  they  related  to  the  mere 
right  of  holding  a  Convention,  and  forming  a  Constitution, 
were  considered  as  assumptions  of  power,  not  warranted 
by  the  Constitution,  or  the  Ordinance;  and  an  infringement 
of  the  rights  of  the  local  Legislature.  It  was,  however, 
silently  submitted  to;  and  the  members  of  the  Convention, 
thirty-five  in  number,  were  chosen  in  the  manner  pre- 
scribed by  that  act.  The  result  of  the  choice  was  highly 
creditable  to  the  intelligence  of  the  inhabitants,  as,  with 
but  few  exceptions,  the  most  intelligent  men  in  the  coun- 
ties were  selected.  Among  the  ten  delegates  from  Hamilton 
county,  was  Jeremiah  Morrow,  who  has  since  filled  an 
ample  space  in  the  estimation  and  confidence  of  the  nation; 
Francis  Dunlavy,  a  veteran  pioneer  of  talents,  of  liberal 
education,  and  of  unbending  integrity,  was  chosen.  John 
Smith  and  John  Riley,  both  men  of  strong  minds  and  irre- 
proachable characters,  were  also  of  the  number. 

Among  the  delegates  from  Jefferson  county  was  Bezaleel 
Wells;  from  Adams,  General  Darlington;  from  Ross,  Gen- 
eral Massie,  Governor  Worthington  and  Governor  Tiffin; 
from  Trumbull,  Governor  Huntington;  from  Washington, 
Ephraim  Cutler,  Benjamin  Ives  Gilman,  and  the  venerable 
General  Rufus  Putnam;  all  of  them  men  of  vigorous  minds, 
and  high  standing  in  the  confidence  of  their  fellow  citizens. 

On  the  first  Monday  of  November,  1802,  the  Convention 
assembled  at  Chillicothe,  consisting  of  the  following  mem- 
bers: 

From  the  county  of  Adams — Joseph  Darlington,  Thomas 
Kirker  and  Israel  Donaldson. 

From  the  county  of  Hamilton — Francis  Dunlavy,  John 
Paul,  Jeremiah  Morrow,  John  Wilson,  Charles  Wylling 
Byrd,  John  Smith,  John  Riley,  William  Goforth,  John  W. 
Browne,  and  John  Kitchel. 

From  the  county  of  Ross — Edward  Tiffin,  Nathaniel  Mas- 


352  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

sie,  Thomas  Worthington,  Michael  Baldwin,  and  James 
Grubb. 

From  the  county  of  Jefferson — Rudolph  Bair,  John  Mil- 
ligan,  George  Humphrey,  Bezaleel  Wells,  and  Nathan  Up- 
degraff. 

From  the  county  of  Trumbull — Samuel  Huntingdon  and 
David  Abbot. 

From  the  county  of  Belmont — James  Caldwell  and  Elijah 
Woods. 

From  the  county  of  Fairfield — Emanuel  Carpenter  and 
Henry  Abrahams. 

From  the  county  of  Washington — Ephraim  Cutler,  Rufus 
Putnam,  John  Mclntyre,  and  Benjamin  Ives  Gilman. 

From  the  county  of  Clermont — Philip  Gatch  and  James 
Sargent. 

On  the  succeeding  day,  they  assembled,  and  elected  Ed- 
ward Tiffin  President,  and  Thomas  Scott,  Secretary.  Be- 
fore they  proceeded  to  business,  Governor  St.  Clair  proposed 
to  address  them,  in  his  official  character,  as  the  chief  execu- 
tive magistrate  of  the  Territory.  This  proposition  was  re- 
sisted by  several  of  the  members.  After  it  had  been  dis- 
cussed some  time,  a  motion  was  made,  and  adopted  by  a 
majority  of  five,  couched  in  these  words:  "That  Arthur 
St.  Clair,  senior,  Esquire,  be  permitted  to  address  the  Con- 
vention on  those  points  which  he  deems  of  importance." 
The  phraseology  of  the  resolution,  compared  with  the  pro- 
posal of  the  Governor,  presents  a  question,  whether  it  was 
not  intended  to  mortify  his  feelings,  if  not  to  offer  a  per- 
sonal insult.  On  that  subject  it  is  unnecessary  to  express 
an  opinion. 

After  the  Governor  had  made  his  address,  which  was 
sensible  and  conciliatory,  a  resolution  was  offered  for  the 
consideration  of  the  Convention,  declaring  that,  "it  is  now 
expedient  to  form  a  Constitution  and  State  government." 
Although  more  than  a  fourth  of  the  members,  composing 
the  body,   had  expressed   their   opinion,   in   very  decided 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  353 

terms,  against  the  expediency  of  the  measure,  and  against 
the  manner  of  its  accomplishment;  yet  the  resolution  was 
carried,  by  a  vote  of  thirty-two  to  one ;  two  members  being 
absent,  and  Judge  Cutler,  an  indomitable  Whig,  of  Wash- 
ington county,  voting  in  the  negative,  "solitary  and  alone." 

Early  in  the  session,  the  different  articles,  or  subjects 
which  it  was  proposed  to  introduce  into  the  Constitution, 
were  referred  to  separate  committees.  A  resolution  was 
also  offered,  declaring  in  substance,  that  when  the  Consti- 
tution was  finished,  it  should  be  submitted  to  the  people 
for  their  adoption  or  rejection,  before  it  should  go  into  op- 
eration. That  proposition  would  have  been  strictly  repub- 
lican, and  proper,  under  any  circumstances ;  but  peculiarly 
so,  in  that  case,  as  neither  the  people,  nor  their  represen- 
tatives in  the  Assembly,  had  been  consulted,  or  had  exer- 
cised any  agency  in  forming  the  law,  by  the  authority  of 
which  the  Convention  had  been  called;  or  in  prescribing 
the  principles  on  which  they  were  to  act;  nor  had  an  op- 
portunity been  afforded  them,  to  form  and  express  an 
opinion  on  the  important  conditions  contained  in  the  prop- 
osition, offered  by  Congress.  Yet  the  resolution  was  reject- 
ed by  a  vote  of  twenty-seven  to  seven ;  and  the  Constitution 
was  declared  to  be  in  force,  and  obligatory  on  the  people, 
without  their  assent,  expressed  in  any  form  whatever ;  and, 
in  fact,  without  their  knowing  how  far  the  Convention,  in 
their  compact  with  Congress,  had  bartered  away  their 
rights,  guarantied  in  the  federal  Constitution,  and  in  the 
act  of  cession. 

Some  persons  ascribed  the  rejection  of  the  resolution,  to 
a  fear  that  the  people  would  repudiate  the  instrument,  if  it 
were  submitted  to  them,  in  the  form  in  which  it  had  been 
drawn  up.  Others  ascribed  it  to  an  over  anxiety  to  get 
the  new  government  into  operation,  in  the  shortest  possi- 
ble time,  as  it  was  understood,  that  all  the  important  offices 
to  be  created,  both  federal  and  state,  were  to  be  filled  by 
members  of  that  body.  Without  stopping  to  speculate  on 
23 


354  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

the  probability  or  improbability  of  these  suppositions,  they 
will  be  passed  over,  with  this  remark :  that,  under  all  the 
circumstances  of  the  case,  there  were  strong  grounds  to 
fear,  that  personal  considerations  had  their  influence,  in 
producing  the  rejection  of  the  resolution.  It  was  said  in 
their  behalf,  that  they  were  influenced  by  an  honest  desire, 
to  save  labor  and  strife,  and  prevent  an  unnecessary  loss 
of  time. 

It  must  be  confessed,  that  it  requires  a  large  share  of 
charity  to  adopt  that  conclusion.  The  people,  however, 
must  judge  for  themselves,  whether  the  considerations  sug- 
gested, if  sincere,  were  sufficient,  under  the  circumstances 
of  the  case,  to  justify  the  course  pursued.  It  was  certainly 
a  bad  precedent;  and  at  the  commencement  of  the  political 
existence  of  the  State,  was  sufficient  to  excite  alarm  for 
the  future. 

As  the  Territorial  Legislature  was  in  existence,  and 
stood  adjourned  to  meet  at  Cincinnati,  on  the  fourth  Mon- 
day in  November,  three  weeks  after  the  opening  of  the 
Convention,  a  resolution  was  passed,  directing  their  Presi- 
dent to  request  the  Governor  to  dissolve  or  prorogue  that 
body.  Such  a  precaution  was  altogether  unnecessary,  as 
no  disposition  existed  among  the  members,  either  to  em- 
barrass, or  in  any  way  interfere  with,  the  movements  of 
the  Convention.  That  such  a  disposition  did  not  exist,  was 
verified  by  the  fact,  that  the  day  for  the  meeting  of  the 
Legislature,  came  and  passed ;  the  members  remaining  at 
home,  as  by  common  consent.  No  attempt  was  made  by 
the  Governor,  or  by  any  of  the  members,  to  convene  that 
body,  till  its  existence  was  terminated  ;  and  it  was  succeed- 
ed by  the  General  Assembly,  under  the  State  Constitution. 

On  many  of  the  questions  discussed  in  the  Convention, 
great  diversity  of  opinion,   and  much  warmth   of  feeling, 
was  manifested.     This  was  the  case,  particularly,  on  the 
different  propositions  which  were  offered,  relating  to  th< 
people  of  color,  then  residing  in  the  Territory,  amounting 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  355 

probably  to  one  or  two  hundred.  A  few  of  the  members 
were  disposed  to  declare  them  citizens,  to  the  fall  extent  of 
that  term;  while  others  contended  against  allowing  them 
any  other  privilege,  than  the  protection  of  the  laws,  and 
exemption  from  taxes  and  militia  duty.  Propositions  were 
made  to  declare  them  ineligible  to  any  office,  civil  or  mili- 
tary; also  to  exclude  them  from  being  examined  as  wit- 
nesses, in  courts  of  justice,  against  white  persons. 

On  some  of  those  questions,  great  warmth  of  feeling  was 
excited;  and  fears  were  entertained,  that,  if  they  were  not 
soon  disposed  of,  they  would  greatly  embarrass,  if  not  en- 
tirely defeat,  the  object  for  which  they  were  assembled. 
The  apprehension  of  such  a  disastrous  result,  induced  them, 
by  a  tacit  consent,  to  abandon  all  the  propositions  which 
had  been  made,  relating  to  the  subject,  by  permitting  them 
to  lie  on  the  table,  undisposed  of;  and  proceeding  to  form  a 
Constitution,  having  no  direct  reference  whatever,  to  that 
matter;  but  embracing  only  the  free  white  population  of 
the  district,  who  alone  were  represented  in  their  body.  It 
seemed  also  to  be  understood  that  its  phraseology  should 
be  so  guarded  as  to  show  that  people  of  color  were  not 
considered  as  parties  to  it;  and  that  as  they  had  no  agency 
in  its  formation,  they  should  have  none  in  its  administra- 
tion. With  that  view  they  were  carefully  excluded  from 
the  description  of  persons,  recognised  as  citizens  of  the 
counties,  who  were  to  be  represented  in  the  General  As- 
sembly. The  Constitution  requires,  that  representation 
shall  always  be  in  the  proportion  of  population,  and  of  that 
population,  wrhich  was  understood  to  compose  the  body,  by 
whom,  and  for  whom,  it  was  made. 

Every  county  is  entitled  to  a  representation  in  propor- 
tion to  the  number  of  its  citizens ;  of  course  those  only  can 
be  considered  as  citizens  who  are  included  in  the  class  for 
whom  a  representation  is  provided.  Persons  of  color  are 
not  included,  and  therefore  cannot  be  citizens.  Hence  it  is 
that,  in  taking  the  enumeration  of  citizens,  directed  by  the 


356  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Constitution,  people  of  color  cannot  be  included  —  that 
the  Legislature  are  required  to  apportion  both  Senators 
and  Representatives,  among  the  counties,  according  to  the 
number  of  white  male  inhabitants,  and  that  the  right  of 
suffrage  is  confined  to  the  white  population. 

Every  person  who  reads  the  Constitution  must  discover, 
that  colored  people  cannot  be  represented  in  the  Legisla- 
ture ;  and  that  they  have  not,  and  cannot  have,  any  agency 
in  conducting  the  government,  or  in  making,  or  adminis- 
tering the  laws.  In  these  respects  they  stand  on  the 
ground  of  the  aborigines,  who  remain  in  the  State,  after 
they  have  ceded  their  lands  to  the  government.  While 
they  are  suffered  to  continue,  they  have  a  right  to  claim 
the  protection  of  the  laws  of  the  State,  and  to  be  treated 
with  justice  and  humanity,  but  beyond  that,  no  claims  are 
secured  to  them. 

The  formation  of  the  third  article  of  the  Constitution, 
which  creates  the  judicial  department,  gave  rise  to  some 
difficulty.  It  being  understood  that  the  temporary  seat  of 
government  would  be  established  at  Chillicothe,  the  dele- 
gates from  some  of  the  more  populous  counties,  remote 
from  that  place,  objected  to  the  establishment  of  a  Supreme 
Court,  to  be  held  exclusively  at  the  seat  of  government, 
with  courts  of  Nisi  PjHus,  for  the  trial  of  issues  of  fact. 
They  were  unwilling  to  yield  the  claims  of  their  own  coun- 
ties ;  and  it  was  soon  found,  that  a  majority  could  not  be 
had,  to  locate  the  court  in  any  one  of  the  counties.  To 
get  over  that  difficulty,  the  novel  plan  of  holding  a 
Supreme  Court  in  each  county  was  adopted.  One  evil 
arising  from  that  scheme  was,  that  the  Judges  were 
required  to  be  on  horseback,  half  the  year,  and  were 
compelled  to  decide  important  questions  of  law,  in  gnat 
haste;  and  often,  in  frontier  counties,  where  access  to 
law  books  could  not  be  had;  and  as  the  same  Judge* 
are  not  always  present,  it  sometimes  happens  that  tin 
same    point   is   decided   differently    in    different   counties. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  357 

To  avoid  this  evil,  as  far  as  possible,  the  Legislature,  in 
1821,  directed  a  special  session,  of  all  the  Judges  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  to  be  held  at  the  seat  of  government, 
once  in  each  year,  to  consider  and  decide  questions  re- 
served in  the  counties,  and  sent  up  by  order  of  the 
Court.  This  arrangement  has  removed  some  of  the 
difficulties   before   noticed. 

The  indulgence  of  local  pride,  which  led  to  this  result, 
was  truly  unfortunate,  and  subjected  the  administration  of 
justice  to  difficulties  and  embarrassments,  the  evil  conse- 
quences of  which  cannot  be  estimated.  None  but  the 
judges  and  members  of  the  bar,  can  form  an  adequate  idea 
of  the  hurry,  confusion,  and  at  the  same  time,  delay,  which 
has  been  caused  in  the  administration  of  justice,  by  the 
anomalous  plan  resorted  to,  as  a  substitute  for  the  system 
first  proposed,  which  was  a  Supreme  Court  located  at  the 
seat  of  government,  with  Circuit  Court  powers. 

The  manner  in  which  the  Convention  arranged  the  Courts 
of  Common  Pleas,  has  also  been  found  inconvenient  and 
expensive.     The  positive  requirement,  that  there  shall  be 
at  least  two  associate  judges  for  each  county,  precludes  the 
possibility  of  modifying  those  courts,  so  as  to  have  them 
composed  entirely  of  legal  characters.     It  was  the  opinion 
of  the  bar  generally,  at  that  time,  that  the  Judges  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  and  the  Presidents  of  the  Courts  of  Com- 
mon Pleas,  ought  to  have  been  appointed  during  good  be- 
havior.    Serious  fears  were  entertained  that  the  short  term 
of  their  office  would  lead  to  a  want  of  stability  and  uni- 
formity in  decision;  and  might  bring  them  under  the  influ- 
ence of  leading  political  men.     This  opinion  was  predi- 
cated on  the  same  reasons  assigned  in  England  in  favor  of 
the  independence   of  their  Judges.     It   has   always   been 
thought  in  that  country,  that  to  secure  the  just  and  equal 
administration  of  the  laws  in  all  cases,  and  to  all  orders  of 
men,  the  persons  by  whom  they  are  administered,  should 


358  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

feel  themselves  alike  independent  of  the  power  of  the  crown, 
and  of  popular  caprice. 

Fears  were  also  entertained,  that  in  times  of  high  party 
excitement,  judges  would  be  selected,  rather  for  their 
political  opinions,  than  their  legal  acquirements.  How  far 
this  apprehension  has  been  realized,  is  for  others  to  decide. 

It  may  be  here  remarked,  that  some  of  the  difficulties  just 
referred  to,  show  the  danger  of  resorting  to  too  much  specific 
legislation  in  the  formation  of  constitutions  for  representa- 
tive governments.  In  despotic  countries,  whose  charters  of 
government  are  considered  as  concessions  by  the  crown  to 
the  people,  the  more  full  and  explicit  they  are,  the  better. 
But  in  republics,  where  all  power  rests  with  the  people, 
and  the  government,  of  right,  can  exercise  only  such  por- 
tions of  it  as  have  been  delegated  to  them,  the  case  is  very 
different. 

The  provision  fixing  the  minimum  size  of  counties  at 
four  hundred  square  miles,  has  resulted  in  the  formation  of 
small  counties,  throughout  the  State,  and  has  oppressed  the 
Legislature  with  endless  applications  to  razee  large  coun- 
ties to  the  minimum  of  the  Constitution.  The  plea  of  con- 
venience urged  in  favor  of  that  policy,  is  rebutted  by  the 
pressure  of  expense  it  produces,  and  the  impossibility  of 
placing  county  institutions  and  improvements  on  a  respect- 
able footing.  It  was  well  known,  that  several  leading  poli- 
ticians of  that  period,  felt  a  deep  interest  in  the  formation 
of  new  counties,  and  especially  in  the  location  of  county 
seats;  and  it  was  supposed  that  the  influence  of  that  fact 
was  felt  in  the  Convention. 

Notwithstanding  these  defects,  the  leading  principles 
which  characterize  the  Constitution,  have  met  with  general 
approbation ;  though  it  was  feared  that,  in  some  particu- 
lars, the  equalizing  principle  was  carried  too  far  for  the 
safety  and  stability  of  our  institutions.  There  was  an  hon- 
est apprehension  that  the  popular  election  of  officers,  who, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  359 

by  a  faithful  discharge  of  their  duty,  must  incur  the  dis- 
pleasure of  those  on  whom  their  re-election  depended, 
might  be  productive  of  injurious  consequences ;  but  expe- 
rience has  shown  that  the  danger  was  not  as  serious  as 
was  anticipated. 

The  mode  provided  for  the  appointment  of  officers  in  the 
militia,  was  particularly  objected  to,  by  men  of  military 
experience;  and  it  is  evident  that,  under  that  plan,  the 
organization  and  improvement  of  the  militia  has  not  equal- 
ed the  public  expectation.  One  of  the  objections  was,  the 
election  of  officers,  by  the  men,  whom  they  were  to  com- 
mand. 

Probably  there  is  no  article  in  the  Constitution  that 
strikes  the  reader  with  more  surprise,  than  that  which  de- 
fines the  powers  of  the  Governor.  They  are  so  limited  and 
restricted,  as  to  be  almost  nominal.  It  is  made  his  duty  to 
recommend  to  the  consideration  of  the  Assembly,  such  mat- 
ters as  he  shall  think  proper.  He  may  fill  vacancies  in 
office,  happening  in  the  recess  of  the  General  Assembly, 
till  the  end  of  their  next  session.  He  may  reprieve  or  par- 
don convicts;  and  is  authorised  to  appoint  the  Adjutant 
General  of  the  State ;  but  he  cannot  interfere,  in  any  form, 
with  the  action  of  the  Legislature,  or  check,  for  a  single 
hour,  the  most  improvident,  or  unconstitutional  movements 
of  that  body.  He  has  not  any  participation  in  the  appoint- 
ing power.  He  is  not  permitted  to  nominate  candidates 
for  office ;  nor  can  he  remove  an  officer,  or  even  suspend 
his  functions,  temporarily,  however  mischievous  his  conduct 
in  office  may  be.  It  has  been  intimated,  heretofore,  that 
this  parsimonious  delegation  of  power  to  the  chief  execu- 
tive, may  be  attributed  to  a  recollection  of  the  manner  in 
which  the  Governor  of  the  Territory  had  executed  the  pow- 
ers confided  to  him  by  the  Ordinance.  That  example  was 
before  their  eyes ;  and  it  was  natural  to  expect,  that  while 
they  were  studiously  aiming  to  avoid  one  extreme,  they 
would  fall  into  the  other. 


360  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

The  question  of  boundary,  though  not  expressly  referred 
to  the  Convention,  was  one  of  greater  importance  than 
would  appear  at  first  view.  It  is  generally  known,  to  those 
who  have  consulted  the  maps  of  the  western  country,  ex- 
tant at  the  time  the  Ordinance  of  1787  was  passed,  that 
Lake  Michigan  was  represented  as  being  very  far  north  of 
the  position,  which  it  has  since  been  ascertained  to  occupy. 
On  a  map  in  the  Department  of  State,  which  was  before 
the  committee  of  Congress,  who  formed  the  Ordinance,  for 
the  government  of  the  Territory,  the  southern  boundary  of 
that  Lake,  was  laid  down  as  being  near  the  forty-second 
degree  of  north  latitude ;  and  there  was  a  pencil  line  pass- 
ing through  the  southern  bend  of  the  Lake  to  the  Canada 
line,  which  intersected  the  strait,  between  the  river  Raisin 
and  the  town  of  Detroit.  That  line  was  manifestly  intend- 
ed by  the  committee,  and  by  Congress,  to  be  the  northern 
boundary  of  this  State ;  and,  on  the  principles  on  which 
courts  of  chancery  construe  contracts,  accompanied  with 
plats,  that  map,  and  the  line  marked  on  it,  should  have 
been  taken,  as  conclusive  evidence  of  the  boundary,  with- 
out reference  to  the  actual  position  of  the  southern  extreme 
of  the  Lake. 

When  the  Convention  was  in  session,  in  1802,  it  was  the 
prevailing  understanding,  that  the  old  maps  were  correct; 
and  that  the  line,  as  defined  in  the  Ordinance,  would  ter- 
minate at  some  point  on  the  strait,  far  above  the  Maumee 
bay  ;  but,  while  that  subject  was  under  discussion,  a  man 
who  had  hunted  many  years  on  Lake  Michigan,  and  was 
well  acquainted  with  its  position,  happened  to  be  in  Chilli- 
cothe,  and  in  conversation  with  some  of  the  members,  men- 
tioned to  them,  that  the  Lake  extended  much  farther  south 
than  was  generally  supposed;  and  that  a  map  he  had  leen 
placed  its  southern  bend  many  miles  north  of  its  true  posi- 
tion. His  statement  produced  some  apprehension,  and  ex- 
citement on  the  subject,  and  induced  the  Convention  to 
change  the  line  prescribed  in  the  act  of  Congress,  so  far  as 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  361 

to  provide,  that  if  it  should  be  found  to  strike  Lake  Erie, 
below  the  Maumee  river,  as  the  hunter  informed  them  it 
would,  then  the  boundary  of  the  State,  should  be  a  line 
drawn  from  the  point  where  the  prescribed  line  intersected 
the  west  boundary  of  the  State,  direct  to  the  most  northern 
cape  of  the  Maumee  bay.  That  provision  saved  to  the 
State  of  Ohio,  the  valuable  ports  and  harbors  on  the  Mau- 
mee river  and  bay,  which  were  the  prize  contended  for,  in 
what  was  called,  "  the  Michigan  war  of  Governor  Lucas." 
Yet  some  of  the  members  were  so  intent  on  the  establish- 
ment of  a  State  government,  in  the  shortest  possible  period, 
that  they  hesitated  in  making  the  provision,  lest  it  might 
cause  delay;  but  fortunately  it  was  adopted,  and  its  object 
is  now  secure.  Small  matters  sometimes  lead  to  great  re- 
sults, as  was  the  fact  in  this  case. 

It  was  the  opinion  of  some  of  the  pioneers,  that  the  Con- 
vention ought  to  have  claimed  the  line  indicated  by  the 
maps  extant,  and  assumed  to  be  correct,  when  the  Ordi- 
nance was  formed.  In  other  words,  they  should  have 
claimed  the  line,  which  the  Ordinance  manifestly  intended 
to  give,  and  which,  by  a  fair  interpretation,  it  did  give. 
That  claim  could  have  been  maintained,  with  greater  pro- 
priety and  effect,  than  the  hypothetical  one  set  up  in  the 
Constitution ;  and  particularly  so,  as  the  State  was  entitled 
to  the  possession  and  jurisdiction  of  the  entire  Territory, 
east  of  her  western  boundary  extending  from  the  river 
Ohio  to  the  Canada  line,  which,  as  the  result  has  shown 
would  have  continued  to  be  a  part  of  the  State,  from  that 
day  till  1835. 

Some  excitement  was  also  produced  by  the  conflicting 
views  which  were  entertained  on  the  subject  of  salaries 
and  compensations,  which  were  finally  adjusted;  and,  on 
the  whole,  the  business  of  the  session  was  conducted  and 
closed,  with  as  much  harmony  as  could  have  been  expected. 

Before  they  separated,  an  address  to  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  and  to  both  Houses  of  Congress  was  adopted; 


362  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

expressing  their  gratitude  for  the  favors  they  had  received 
from  government;  and  their  approbation  of  the  principles 
on  which  it  had  been  administered.  A  resolution  was  also 
passed,  authorising  the  President  of  the  Convention  to  take 
charge  of  the  new  Constitution,  after  it  should  be  signed  by 
all  the  members  ;  and  deposite  it  in  the  office  of  the  Secre- 
tary of  State,  as  soon  as  that  officer  should  be  appointed. 

The  minority,  in  and  out  of  the  Convention,  considered 
the  first  of  these  resolutions,  as  conveying  a  very  gratuitous 
and  unmerited  compliment.  The  administration  of  the  elder 
Adams,  then  just  terminated,  had  treated  the  people  of  the 
Territory  justly — they  did  not  withhold  or  deny,  any  right 
guarantied  to  them  ;  and  this  is  all  that  can  be  said  in  their 
favor.  The  administration  of  Mr.  Jefferson  had  just  com- 
menced, and  of  course,  could  not  have  done  anything  to  ben- 
efit the  Territory,  apart  from  the  act  to  authorise  the  forma- 
tion of  a  State  government,  which  was  loaded  with  condi- 
tions and  restrictions  both  hard  and  oppressive,  requiring  a 
surrender  of  half  the  privileges  guarantied  to  them,  both 
by  the  Ordinance  and  the  federal  Constitution,  on  their  be- 
coming a  State. 

A  view  of  the  manner  in  which  the  Convention  was  called, 
and  the  condition  of  the  Territory  at  the  time,  necessarily 
give  rise  to  some  interesting  reflections.  There  wras  a  Ter- 
ritorial Legislature  then  in  existence,  vested  with  full  and 
complete  legislative  power,  which  had  never  been  consul- 
ted on  the  subject.  About  one-third  of  the  members  of  the 
Convention,  were  also  members  of  that  Assembly.  No 
power  had  been  given  to  Congress,  in  the  Ordinance  or  else- 
where, to  interfere  with  the  local  legislation  of  the  Territory, 
after  the  establishment  of  the  second  grade  of  government. 
The  formation  of  a  State  Constitution,  belonged  who'ly  to 
the  people  of  the  Territory,  and  their  Legislature ;  neither 
of  whom  had  been  permitted  to  take  any  part  in  the  move- 
ment. When  the  people  of  the  district  amounted  to  sixty 
thousand  in  number,  they  were  authorised  to  form  a  Con- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  3(j;j 

stitution  on  republican  principles,  and  become  a  member 
of  the  Union.  Prior  to  that  time,  it  was  understood,  that 
Congress  had  power  to  permit  the  formation  of  a  State 
government ;  but  that  when  that  permission  had  been  gran- 
ted, their  power  was  exhausted.  As  to  everything  else, 
connected  with  that  subject,  the  Legislature  and  people  of 
the  district  had  the  exclusive  right  of  prescribing  and 
acting. 

In  confirmation  of  the  correctness  of  the  view  here  pre- 
sented, the  reader  is  requested  to  pause,  and  examine  the 
Appendix  annexed,  marked  K.  where  he  will  find,  that  Mr. 
Fearing,  the  delegate  then  representing  the  Territory  in 
Congress,  resisted  the  proposition  for  calling  a  Convention, 
on  the  same  grounds,  which  are  here  stated — that  neither 
the  people  of  the  Territory  at  large,  nor  their  representa- 
tives in  the  General  Assembly,  had  been  consulted ;  and 
that  the  project  before  Congress,  was  neither  more  nor  less, 
than  a  mandate  directing  the  citizens  to  elect  a  Convention ; 
and  ordering  that  body,  when  assembled,  if  they  assented 
to  the  conditions  proposed,  to  proceed  and  form  a  Constitu- 
tion for  the  people  of  the  Territory;  without  ascertaining 
whether  it  met  the  views  of  the  majority  of  them,  or  not. 
The  reader  will  also  find  that  other  members  of  Congress 
viewed  the  project  in  the  same  light,  and  opposed  it  for  the 
same  cause  ;  and  that  the  people  of  the  Territory  expressed 
the  same  opinion  at  their  public  meetings.  Yet  Congress 
without  consulting  either,  ordered  a  Convention,  and  direc- 
ted all  the  details  concerning  it. 

The  law  they  passed,  extended  the  right  of  suffrage  to 
almost  every  person  residing  in  the  Territory  ;  which  was  a 
violation  of  so  much  of  the  Ordinance  as  related  to  that 
subject.  The  authority  of  the  people,  and  their  immediate 
representatives,  was  broken  down — the  power  of  the  gen- 
eral government  set  up  in  its  place,  and  a  course  pursued 
which  was  completely  revolutionary,  in  its  character  and 
tendency.     It  was,  however,  submitted  to,  and  no  efforts 


364  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

were  made  to  retard,  or  embarrass  the  movements  of  the 
majority,  after  Congress  had  taken  the  management  of  the 
matter  into  their  own  hands.  Indeed,  such  an  attempt,  if 
it  had  been  made,  would  have  been  useless.  That  being 
the  case,  one  would  suppose,  that  the  Constitution  formed 
under  such  circumstances,  by  an  authority  so  remote  from 
the  people,  would  have  been  submitted  to  their  considera- 
tion, to  be  accepted  or  rejected,  at  their  pleasure.  Such, 
however,  was  not  the  fact.  The  resolution  offered  for  that 
purpose,  was  voted  down,  and  the  instrument  was  declared 
to  be  obligatory  on  all  concerned,  nolens  volens. 

The  course  pursued  by  the  Convention,  in  regard  to  the 
propositions  submitted  to  them  by  the  act  of  Congress,  was 
somewhat  singular.  It  was  generally  understood  that  as 
they  were  to  be  freely  accepted  or  rejected,  the  action  of 
the  Convention,  either  accepting  or  rejecting  them,  would 
be  final.  Such,  however,  was  not  the  fact.  Although  it 
was  their  unanimous  opinion,  that  the  conditions  offered  by 
Congress,  were  not  an  adequate  consideration  for  the  State 
rights  which  were  to  be  relinquished  ;  yet  instead  of  reject- 
ing the  propositions  promptly,  they  passed  an  Ordinance, 
in  which  they  resolved  to  accept  them,  provided  certain  ad- 
ditions and  modifications,  should  be  agreed  to  by  Congress. 
The  prevailing  opinion  was,  that  they  were  not  authorised 
to  pursue  such  a  course — that  their  powers  were  specifi- 
cally stated,  in  the  act  of  Congress,  under  which  they  were 
elected  ;  and  that  there  was  no  ground  of  pretence,  that  the 
people  delegated  to  them,  other,  or  greater,  powers  than 
were  there  expressed.  It  was  believed  that  a  power,  given 
expressly  to  accept  or  reject  a  specific  proposition,  did  not 
grant  a  power,  either  to  offer,  or  accept  a  different  one. 
Yet  the  Convention  did  accept  a  proposition,  altogether 
different  from  the  one,  which  was  submitted.  Whether 
this  was  right  or  wrong,  is  now  a  matter  of  no  moment ; 
as  it  has  been  acquiesced  in,  till  the  time  of  rectifying  the 
error,  has  passed  by.     It  may,  however,  be  made  a  ques- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  365 

tion,  whether  the  compact  has  not  been  carried  much  far- 
ther, in  practice,  than  the  terms  in  which  it  is  couched,  will 
justify.  It  declares  "that  every  tract  of  land  sold,  or  to  be 
sold,  by  Congress,  from  and  after  the  30th  day  of  June,  (then 
next,)  should  be  and  remain  exempt  from  any  tax,  for  the 
term  of  five  years,  to  be  reckoned  from  the  day  of  sale." 
The  construction  given  to  that  compact  was,  that  the  State 
relinquished  the  right  of  levying  taxes  on  public  land,  as 
well  before  it  should  be  sold,  as  for  the  term  of  five  years 
from  and  after  such  sale.  This  was  not  the  construction  of 
the  minority.  They  did  not  consider  the  compact  as  ex- 
tending to  any  land  in  the  Territory,  until  it  had  been  sold 
by  Congress ;  and,  of  course,  that  all  lands  held  by  them, 
were  subject  to  taxation,  as  long  as  they  remained  unsold. 
The  only  benefit,  it  was  supposed,  the  United  States  could 
derive  from  that  exemption,  was,  the  inducement  it  offered 
to  the  community,  to  become  purchasers  from  them,  rather 
than  from  private  individuals. 

It  was  understood  that  a  majority  of  the  members  of  the 
Convention,  considered  the  right  of  taxing  Congress  lands, 
entirely  given  up,  and  that  they  came  to  that  conclusion, 
on  the  assumed  ground,  that,  irrespective  of  the  compact, 
the  State  would  not  possess  the  power  of  taxing  any  land, 
held  as  the  property  of  the  nation.  It  was  admitted  by  the 
minority,  that  during  the  Territorial  government,  that  was 
true;  though  there  were  some,  who  denied  the  obligation  of 
the  Ordinance  altogether,  on  the  ground,  that  it  was  ex 
parte,  and  never  agreed  to  by  the  people.  That  opinion, 
however,  was  expressed  by  a  very  few.  The  great  mass 
of  the  inhabitants,  of  both  parties,  considered  it  as  obliga- 
tory in  all  its  parts,  on  the  ground  that  they  had  given  their 
assent  to  it,  by  voluntarily  settling  in  the  country,  and 
availing  themselves  of  its  protection,  and  of  all  the  other 
benefits  which  it  secured. 

During  the  continuance  of  the  Territorial  government, 
both  the  soil  and  the  jurisdiction  of  the  country,  were  vest- 


366  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ed  in  Congress ;  and,  as  long  as  those  rights  were  united  in 
them,  their  power  to  dispose  of  either,  for  the  purposes  of 
the  trust,  could  not  be  questioned ;  and  it  appears  reasona- 
ble, that  that  power  should  continue,  till  the  people  ac- 
quired a  right  to  form  an  independent  state  government,  by 
the  acquisition  of  sixty  thousand  inhabitants.  When  that 
period  came,  the  jurisdiction  of  Congress  necessarily  termi- 
nated; and,  if  the  new  federal  Constitution  had  not  been 
previously  adopted,  the  State  of  Ohio  being  possessed  of 
the  same  attributes  of  sovereignty,  which  Virginia  held,  at 
the  date  of  her  act  of  cession,  would  have  become  the  pro- 
prietor, in  her  own  right,  of  all  the  land  not  previously  dis- 
posed of  by  Congress. 

The  act  of  cession  having  granted  to  the  new  States 
the  right  of  forming  independent  State  governments,  and  of 
being  admitted  into  the  Union,  in  all  respects  on  a  footing 
with  the  original  States,  the  power  and  the  rights  of  the 
old  Confederation  could  not  have  been  greater  in  Ohio, 
than  they  were  in  the  original  States.  The  privileges  re- 
served by  Virginia,  for  the  States  to  be  erected,  within  the 
ceded  Territory,  had  a  direct  reference  to  the  powers  and 
rights,  enjoyed  by  the  old  States,  at  the  time  the  deed  of 
cession  was  made ;  and  no  other  restriction  was  contem- 
plated, than  such  as  might  have  been  imposed  by  Congress 
on  the  original  States,  if  the  general  government  had  un- 
dergone no  change.  Suppose,  then,  for  a  moment,  that 
Ohio  had  been  erected  into  an  independent  State,  and  ad- 
mitted into  the  Union,  before  the  adoption  of  the  present 
federal  government,  could  Congress  have  claimed  other,  or 
greater,  powers  over  her,  than  she  exercised  over  Virginia? 
If  not,  in  whom  would  the  right  of  soil,  and  the  power  of 
taxation,  have  vested?  Virginia,  within  her  limits,  h?ld  an 
undisputed  right  to  both;  and  Ohio  must  have  been  placed 
in  the  same  situation,  or  her  rights  of  sovereignty  would  not 
have  been  equal  to  those  of  Virginia. 

The  grant  from  Virginia  to  Congress,  was  a  trust,  ere  a- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  367 

ted  principally  for  the  inhabitants  of  the  Territory ;  but  in 
part,  for  the  benefit  of  every  State  of  the  Union,  in  the  pro- 
portion expressed  in  the  act  itself. 

It  seems  to  have  been  taken  for  granted,  that  Congress 
would  dispose  of  the  right  of  soil,  in  the  ceded  Territory, 
before  its  population  would  authorise  the  establishment  of 
State  governments ;  which  might  have  been  done,  by  pur- 
suing the  policy  practiced  by  Virginia,  in  disposing  of  the 
residue  of  her  vacant  lands. 

The  act  of  cession  contains  no  reservation  of  right,  in 
favor  of  Congress,  to  continue  after  the  formation  of  State 
governments ;  but  the  terms  used  are  sufficiently  compre- 
hensive, to  vest  in  the  new  States  all  rights  not  legally  dis- 
posed of,  at  the  time  of  their  formation.  On  this  subject 
the  act  is  positive ;  declaring  that  the  cession  "  is  made  on 
condition,  that  the  Territory  so  ceded,  shall  be  laid  out  and 
formed  into  States,  containing  a  suitable  extent  of  terri- 
tory, and  that  the  States,  so  formed,  shall  be  republican 
States,  and  severally  admitted  members  of  the  federal 
Union;  having  the  same  rights  of  sovereignty,  freedom  and  in- 
dependence, as  the  other  States." 

Now,  what  were  the  rights  of  that  character,  possessed 
by  the  other  States,  under  the  old  Confederation?  The  an- 
swer is  important;  for  it  will  decide  what  the  rights  of  the 
new  States  would  have  been,  under  that  government,  had 
it  continued.  Each  of  the  original  States  was  perfectly  in- 
dependent of  each  other,  and  of  all  other  powers ;  except 
so  far  as  they  w^ere  limited  by  their  allegiance  to  the  Con- 
federation, which  was  very  little  more  than  a  shadow. 
Under  that  association,  Congress  had  not  the  power  of 
levying  a  cent  of  tax,  in  any  State  of  the  Union,  or  of  in- 
terfering with  the  exercise  of  that  power  by  the  States 
themselves.  They  could  obtain  money,  only  by  requisitions 
on  the  States,  which  they  had  no  power  to  enforce ;  nor 
could  they  acquire,  or  hold,  real  estate,  without  the  consent 
of  the  State  Legislatures. 


368  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

From  these  premises  it  must  follow,  that  if  the  old  Con- 
federation, to  which  the  deed  of  cession  was  made,  had 
continued,  Ohio  would  have  had,  not  only  the  power  of  tax- 
ation, but  would  have  been  the  owner,  in  her  own  right,  of 
all  the  unsold  land  within  her  limits. 

But  it  is  a  question  more  complex  and  more  difficult  to 
decide,  how  far  the  adoption  of  the  new  federal  Constitu- 
tion, and  the  consent  of  the  State  to  become  a  member  of 
the  Union,  under  it,  has  varied  the  rights  she  might  have 
claimed,  if  no  change  in  the  general  government  had  taken 
place.  The  words  of  the  act  of  cession  have  been  stated 
above.  The  Ordinance  of  1787,  made  in  conformity  with 
that  act,  contains  the  following  provision :  "  And  whenever 
any  of  the  said  States  shall  have  sixty  thousand  free  inhab- 
itants therein,  such  State  shall  be  admitted,  by  its  dele- 
gates, into  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  on  an  equal 
footing  with  the  original  States  in  all  respects  whatever.'''  The 
act  of  Congress,  of  1802,  authorising  the  inhabitants  of  the 
eastern  district  to  form  a  State,  declares  the  same  thing  in 
these  words :  "  The  State,  when  formed,  shall  be  admitted 
into  the  Union  on  the  same  footing  with  the  original  States  in 
all  respects  wJiatever ."  As  each  and  all  of  these  enactments 
guarantee  to  Ohio  the  same  extent  of  sovereignty  as  was 
enjoyed  by  the  old  States,  under  the  Confederation,  with 
no  other  restrictions  than  those  to  which  they  are  subject, 
her  rights  may  be  known,  by  ascertaining  theirs. 

Although  the  powers  of  the  general  government  have 
been  greatly  increased,  and  those  of  the  States  proportion- 
ably  diminished,  by  the  federal  Constitution,  yet  the  old 
States  claim  and  exercise,  without  objection,  the  power  of 
taxing  all  property  within  their  limits. 

Admitting,  then,  that  the  concessions  made  to  the  general 
government  in  the  Constitution,  secured  to  Congress,  for- 
ever, the  primary  disposal  of  the  right  of  soil  in  the  IVrri- 
tory  ;  still,  it  is  contended,  that  the  right  of  taxation  remain- 
ed unimpaired,  and  would  have  heen  enjoyed  by  Ohio,  ah- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  3^9 

restricted,  and  above  the  reach  or  control  of  any  other 
power,  if  no  portion  of  it  had  been  surrendered  by  the 
Convention.  This  assumption  is  put  on  the  simple  ground, 
that  the  original  States  possessed  that  right;  and  that 
Ohio  has  a  three-fold  guarantee  that  every  right  of  sov- 
ereignty, possessed  by  them,  shall  be  held  and  enjoyed 
by  her. 

There  is  not  an  acre  of  land  in  any  one  of  the  old  States, 
to  which  the  Legislature  cannot  extend  her  revenue  laws, 
unless  she  has  exempted  it  from  that  liability,  by  her  own 
act.  If  then,  the  same  power  of  legislation  be  denied  to 
Ohio,  can  it  be  said  that  she  is  placed  on  an  equal  footing 
with  the  other  States,  in  all  respects  whatever? 

After  a  full  view  of  this  subject,  it  seems  to  be  impossi- 
ble to  bring  the  mind  to  any  other  conclusion,  than  that 
the  State  of  Ohio  was  vested  with  ample  power  to  tax  the 
lands  of  Congress,  in  the  same  manner  as  she  did  those  of 
individuals ;  and  that  the  concession  made  by  the  Conven- 
tion did  not  interfere  with  that  right,  further  than  to  sus- 
pend it,  as  to  lands  sold  by  government,  during  the  term  of 
five  years  from  and  after  the  date  of  the  sales  respectively. 
24 


CHAPTER    XX. 

Sketch  of  the  life  of  Gov.  St.  Clair. — His  military  services  in  Canada  and  the 
United  States. — Governor  of  the  North-western  Territory. — Disagreements 
with  the  Legislature. — His  general  character. — His  embarrassments  and 
poverty. — Annuity  granted  by  Pennsylvania. — His  death. 

Governor  St.  Clair  was  a  native  of  Scotland,  born  in 
1734.  Having  received  a  thorough  classical  education,  at 
one  of  the  most  celebrated  Universities  of  his  native  coun- 
try, he  studied  the  profession  of  medicine,  with  a  view  of 
pursuing  it,  as  the  chief  business  of  his  life ;  but,  having  a 
taste  for  military  pursuits,  he  applied  for  a  commission  in 
the  army,  through  his  family  connexions,  who  occupied  an 
elevated  grade  in  society,  and  possessed  a  corresponding 
influence.  He  was  prompted  to  make  this  application, 
from  a  belief  that  it  was  preferable  to  the  dull  pursuits  of 
the  profession  he  had  selected.  The  application  was  suc- 
cessful; and  when  General  Wolfe  was  appointed,  by  the 
elder  Pitt,  to  command  a  momentous  expedition,  fitted  out 
against  the  city  of  Quebec,  one  of  the  most  strongly  forti- 
fied towns  in  America,  St.  Clair  was  a  subaltern  in  his 
army,  and  accompanied  him  into  Canada;  where  he  par- 
ticipated in  the  dangers  and  the  glory  of  the  memorable 
battle  of  September,  1759,  which  terminated  in  the  capture 
of  the  city,  and  the  lamented  death  of  the  commanding 
general,  who  fell  and  expired  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham,  at 
the  moment  victory  had  declared  in  his  favor. 

After  the  treaty  of  17G3,  by  which  peace  was  made  be- 
tween the  contending  nations,  and  the  province  of  Canada 
was  ceded  to  Great  Britain,  St.  Clair  resigned  his  commis- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  371 

sion  in  the  army,  and  removed  to  Pennsylvania,  where  he 
purchased  a  tract  of  land,  in  the  interior  of  the  province,  at 
Legonier  valley,  and  commenced  the  business  of  farming. 
Having  a  good  mathematical  education,  he  found  profita- 
ble employment  as  a  surveyor.  It  was  not  long,  however, 
before  his  talents  and  acquirements  became  generally 
known,  when  he  received  the  appointment  of  Prothono- 
tary  of  Westmoreland  county. 

During  the  interval  between  the  French  war,  and  the 
commencement  of  the  Revolutionary  struggle,  he  held  vari- 
ous civil  offices  in  Pennsylvania,  and  executed  some  im- 
portant commissions,  in  behalf  of  that  province.  The 
strong  evidence  he  had  given,  of  military  genius  and  skill, 
in  the  R\e  or  six  campaigns  in  which  he  served  in  the 
British  army,  during  the  French  war,  and  the  manifesta- 
tions of  intelligence  and  integrity,  afforded  during  his  resi- 
dence in  Pennsylvania  were  such,  that  when  the  troubles 
with  the  mother  country  began,  public  attention  was  direct- 
ed to  him,  as  one  of  the  prominent  men,  who  were  to  lead 
in  the  Revolutionary  struggle,  then  about  to  commence. 

As  soon  as  the  state  of  affairs  in  the  colonies  rendered  it 
necessary  to  resort  to  vigorous  measures,  to  resist  the  op- 
pressive proceedings  of  the  mother  country,  by  military 
force,  in  1775,  the  American  Congress  appointed  him  a 
Colonel  in  the  Continental  army;  and,  in  February  follow- 
ing, ordered  him  to  march  with  his  regiment  into  Canada. 
Early  in  August,  1776,  he  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  a 
Brigadier;  and  in  February,  1777,  after  the  American  army 
had  re-crossed  the  Delaware  a  second  time— eluded  the 
vigilance  of  the  British  at  Trenton— surprised  and  defeated 
them  at  Princeton— breaking  through  their  line— captu- 
ring many  prisoners  and  much  baggage  — and  had  been 
placed  in  safe  and  comfortable  winter  quarters,  in  the 
highlands  of  Jersey,  in  which  movements  St.  Clair  bore  an 
active  part, — he  was  created  a  Major  General,  and  ordered 
to  repair  to  Ticonderoga,  and  place  himself  under  the  com- 


372  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

mand  of  General  Gates';  but  was  instructed  first  to  repair 
to  Philadelphia,  to  receive  the  orders  of  Congress. 

The  post  at  Ticonderoga  was  one  of  great  importance  in 
public  estimation.  It  was  occupied  by  a  numerous  garri- 
son under  the  command  of  General  St.  Clair;  and  it  is  well 
known  by  those  who  are  familiar  with  the  events  of  the 
Revolution,  that  for  some  time  after  it  had  been  evacuated 
by  the  Americans,  and  occupied  by  the  enemy,  General  St. 
Clair  was  very  severely  censured;  but  it  is  also  known, 
that,  after  a  full  and  thorough  investigation  of  the  facts  con- 
nected with  the  transaction,  it  was  ascertained  to  the  satis- 
faction of  the  general  officers  of  the  army,  and  also  of  the 
American  Congress,  that  the  post,  at  the  time  it  was  aban- 
doned, was  in  an  unfinished  state,  and  manifestly  indefensi- 
ble ;  and  that  an  attempt  to  hold  it  against  the  superior  force, 
by  which  it  was  about  to  be  invested,  would  have  been  un- 
successful, and  must  have  terminated  in  its  capture,  and  the 
consequent  loss  of  the  important  detachment  of  the  north- 
ern army,  by  which  it  had  been  garrisoned.  It  was  also 
universally  believed  in  camp,  and  elsewhere,  that  the  loss 
of  that  portion  of  the  American  troops,  would  have  prevent- 
ed the  capture  of  General  Burgoyne  and  his  entire  army. 

Such  was  the  opinion  of  the  court-martial,  who  investi- 
gated the  affair,  as  appears  from  their  report,  submitted  to 
Congress  by  General  Washington,  in  October,  1778.  The 
officers  of  the  army  generally,  who  examined  the  evidence 
taken,  and  reported  in  the  case,  concurred  in  the  opinion, 
that,  situated  as  General  St.  Clair  was,  it  required  more 
moral  courage  to  induce  a  brave  soldier  to  abandon  the 
post  without  a  battle,  than  to  make  a  desperate,  unsuccess- 
ful effort  to  defend  it,  followed  by  the  loss  of  the  fort  and 
garrison.  In  the  one  case,  he  was  sure  to  be  branded  with 
cowardice;  in  the  other,  he  would  cover  himself  with  glory. 
The  general  court-martial,  after  deliberating  on  the  case, 
having  all  the  facts  and  circumstances  connected  with  it. 
fully  before  them,  unanimously  concurred  in  the  opinion, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  373 

that  the  works  could  not  have  been  defended,  successfully, 
in  their  imperfect  state,  against  the  entire  British  army, 
which  was  about  to  invest  them;  and  that  the  officer  in 
command  manifested  a  sound  judgment,  and  a  prudent, 
heroic  resolution,  in  meeting  the  consequences  of  a  faithful 
discharge  of  his  duty,  on  that  trying  occasion,  and  accom- 
panied their  report  with  the  following  sentence:  "Major 
General  St.  Clair  is  acquitted,  with  the  highest  honor,  of  tlie 
cliargcs  exhibited  against  him." 

When  those  proceedings  were  subsequently  taken  up, 
and  acted  on  by  Congress,  a  resolution  was  offered  and 
adopted,  without  one  dissenting  voice,  approving  and  con- 
firming the  sentence  of  the  court-martial,  in  the  same  lan- 
guage in  which  it  was  couched;  and  an  order  was  there- 
upon made,  to  transmit  the  decision  to  the  Commander-in- 
chief. 

The  character  of  the  General  being  thus  triumphantly 
vindicated,  he  continued  in  the  army,  and  served  with 
reputation,  till  the  close  of  the  war,  when  he  retired  to  his 
farm,  at  Legonier,  and  again  engaged  in  the  pursuits  of 
civil  life.  In  1785,  the  Legislature  of  Pennsylvania  ap- 
pointed him  a  delegate  to  the  Continental  Congress,  and 
as  an  evidence  of  the  high  estimation  in  which  he  wTas 
held,  he  was  chosen  President  of  that  august  body,  soon 
after  he  took  his  seat. 

The  ordinance  for  the  government  of  the  North-west- 
ern Territory  having  been  passed,  by  the  Congress  of  the 
old  Confederation,  they  proceeded  to  elect  the  Territorial 
officers  necessary  to  carry  the  provisions  of  it  into  effect ; 
when  General  St.  Clair  was  chosen  Governor,  and  Win- 
throp  Sargent,  Secretary.  At  that  time,  no  settlement  had 
been  made  by  citizens  of  the  United  States,  north-west 
of  the  river  Ohio ;  but  in  the  spring  following,  a  New  Eng- 
land colony,  under  the  lead  of  General  Putnam  and  oth- 
ers, was  planted  at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum  river; 
and  the  Governor,  forthwith,  repaired  to  that  place. 


374  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

In  1788,  it  will  be  recollected,  the  new  federal  Constitu- 
tion was  ratified  by  the  requisite  number  of  States,  and  in 
the  succeeding  year  went  into  operation,  under  the  auspices 
of  President  Washington.  It  being  the  opinion  of  Congress 
that  all  appointments  to  office,  under  the  articles  of  the  old 
Confederation,  terminated  with  the  government  by  which 
they  had  been  made ;  and,  consequently  that  all  the  offices 
in  the  Territory  had  become  vacant  by  the  change  of  gov- 
ernment ;  the  President,  in  conformity  with  that  opinion, 
in  August,  1789,  proceeded  to  nominate  to  the  Senate,  suit- 
able persons  to  fill  those  vacancies. 

His  acquaintance  with  General  St.  Clair  having  been 
long  and  intimate,  he  re-nominated  him  for  the  office  of 
Governor;  which  he  had  previously  held,  under  the  old 
Congress ;  and  the  Senate,  having  advised  and  consented 
to  the  appointment,  a  commission  was  issued  accordingly, 
under  which  he  continued  to  execute  the  duties  of  the 
office,  from  that  time  till  within  a  few  weeks  of  the  termi- 
nation of  the  Territorial  form  of  government,  in  the  winter 
of  1802-3;  when,  to  gratify  the  malice  of  his  enemies, 
he  was  removed  by  Mr.  Jefferson,  who  had  been  his  friend 
and  admirer.  That  removal  was  one  of  the  first  evidences 
given,  by  the  new  administration,  that  politics  were  stronger 
than  friendships,  and  partisan  services  more  availing  than 
talents. 

The  manner  in  which  he  discharged  the  duties  apper- 
taining to  the  office  of  Governor  of  the  Territory,  from  1787 
till  1802,  inclusive;  and  of  commander  of  the  Western 
army  in  1791,  may  be  collected  from  the  preceding  narra- 
tive ;  yet  a  concise  recapitulation  of  some  of  the  occur- 
rences, in  the  official  course  of  that  distinguished  man, 
while  administering  the  civil  government  of  the  Territory, 
cannot  be  uninteresting. 

During  the  continuance  of  the  first  grade  of  that  imperfect 
government,  he  enjoyed  the  respect  and  confidence  of every 
class  of  the  people.     He  was  plain  and  simple  in  his  dMM 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  375 

and  equipage,  open  and  frank  in  his  manners,  and  acces- 
sible to  persons  of  every  rank.  In  these  respects,  he  ex- 
hibited a  striking  contrast  with  the  Secretary,  Colonel  Sar- 
gent; and  that  contrast,  in  some  measure,  increased  his 
popularity;  which  he  retained,  unimpaired,  till  after  the 
commencement  of  the  first  session  of  the  Legislature. 
During  that  session,  he  manifested  a  strong  desire  to 
enlarge  his  own  powers,  and  restrict  those  of  the  Assem- 
bly ;  which  was  the  more  noticed,  as  he  had  opposed  the 
usurpations  of  the  Legislative  Council,  composed  of  him- 
self, or  in  his  absence,  the  Secretary,  and  the  Judges  of 
the  General  Court;  and  had  taken  an  early  opportunity 
of  submitting  his  views  on  that  subject  to  the  General 
Assembly. 

The  first  symptom  of  a  desire  to  extend  his  power,  was 
seen  in  the  construction  he  gave  to  some  of  the  provisions 
of  the  ordinance,  the  tendency  of  which  was,  to  confine  the 
action  of  the  Legislature ;  as,  for  example :  the  Ordinance 
made  it  his  duty,  as  Governor,  to  proceed  from  time  to 
time,  as  circumstances  might  require,  to  lay  out  the  parts 
of  the  district,  in  which  the  Indian  title  had  been  extin- 
guished, into  counties  and  townships;  subject,  however,  to 
such  alterations  as  might  thereafter  be  made  by  the  Legis- 
lature. Although  the  entire  Territory,  subject  to  his  action, 
had  been  laid  out  into  counties,  prior  to  the  meeting  of  the 
Legislature,  in  1799;  yet,  he  claimed  the  exclusive  right 
of  creating  new  counties,  by  the  division  and  alteration  of 
existing  ones. 

In  opposition  to  that  assumption,  the  Legislature  insisted 
that  his  power  was  exhausted  by  what  he  had  already 
done ;  and  that  the  right  of  altering  existing  counties  was 
vested  in  their  body,  subject  to  his  veto. 

In  accordance  with  that  view,  they  proceeded  to  pass  bills 
for  that  purpose,  and  sent  them  to  the  Governor  for  his 
concurrence.  He  not  only  withheld  his  approval,  but  re- 
tained them  in  his  hands,  till  the  close  of  the  session,  when 


376  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

he  sent  a  written  communication  to  the  Assembly,  couched 
in  offensive  language,  remonstrating  against  their  proceed- 
ings, as  an  usurpation  of  power;  which  was  contrary  to 
his  usual  custom. 

He  intimated,  in  pretty  plain  terms,  a  want  of  confidence 
in  the  judgment  and  discretion  of  the  Assembly,  in  deciding 
when  the  number  of  inhabitants,  or  the  situation  of  a  dis- 
trict, rendered  it  necessary,  or  proper,  to  alter  or  divide  it, 
and  thereby  establish  a  new  county ;  and,  as  if  anxious  to 
make  his  power  more  sensibly  felt,  he  proceeded,  imme- 
diately, to  create  and  organise  new  counties,  out  of  old 
ones,  varying  somewhat  from  the  plan  adopted  by  the 
Assembly;  and  to  establish  them  by  proclamation,  without 
consulting  the  Legislature. 

On  the  ground  that  the  section  in  the  Ordinance,  creating 
the  General  Assembly,  declared  that  it  should  consist  of 
the  Governor,  Legislative  Council,  and  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, and  that  the  former  should  have  an  absolute 
veto  on  the  proceedings  of  the  two  Houses ;  he  claimed  to 
be  a  co-ordinate  branch  of  the  Legislature,  vested  with  full 
discretion  to  decide  on  the  propriety  and  expediency  of  all 
their  acts,  placing  his  own  opinion,  in  every  case,  in  oppo- 
sition to  the  judgment  and  experience  of  both  Houses. 

The  effect  of  the  construction  he  gave,  of  his  own  pow- 
ers, may  be  seen  in  the  fact,  that  of  the  thirty  bills,  passed 
by  the  two  Houses,  during  the  first  session,  and  sent  to  him 
for  his  approval,  he  refused  his  assent  to  eleven;  some  of 
which  were  supposed  to  be  of  much  importance  ;  and  all 
of  them  calculated,  more  or  less,  to  advance  the  public  in- 
terest. Some  of  them  he  rejected,  because  they  related  to 
the  establishment  of  new  counties ;  others  because  he 
thought  they  were  unnecessary,  or  inexpedient.  Thus  more 
than  a  third  of  the  fruits  of  the  labor  of  that  entire  session, 
was  lost,  by  the  exercise  of  the  arbitrary  discretion  of  one 
man. 

In  one  of  his  communications,  he  begged  the  Assembly  to 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  377 

remember,  that  he  was  a  co-ordinate  branch  of  their  body, 
and  had  a  right  to  receive  copies  of  all  bills,  reported  in 
either  House,  as  soon  as  they  were  printed,  and  furnished 
to  the  members.  It  was  understood  and  known,  that  no 
act  of  the  Assembly,  could  receive  the  force  of  a  law,  with- 
out his  consent — that  his  veto  was  absolute  and  final ;  and 
that  it  gave  him  a  perfect  control,  over  the  exercise  of  the 
law-making  power ;  but  it  was  not  admitted  for  a  moment, 
that  he  had  a  right  to  engage  in  the  deliberations,  or  inter- 
fere in  any  manner,  with  the  transactions  of  their  body ; 
or  to  require  them  to  communicate  with  him,  on  any  mea- 
sure pending  in  either  House,  as  they  did  with  each  other ; 
yet,  to  gratify  his  feelings,  a  joint  order  was  immediately 
made,  directing  the  officers  to  send  the  bills,  as  he  had 
desired. 

The  apparent  unkindness  of  that  reproof,  was  felt  the 
more  sensibly,  from  the  fact,  that  the  two  Houses,  during 
the  preceding  session,  had  respectfully  requested  him,  to  re- 
turn the  bills  he  could  not  approve,  before  the  close  of  the 
session,  with  his  objections  ;  so  that  it  might  be  in  their 
power,  to  make  an  effort  to  remove  them,  by  amendments  ; 
to  which  request,  he  returned  the  following  uncourteous 
reply — «  As  to  your  request,  gentlemen,  that  when  any  bill, 
or  bills,  may  be  presented  for  approbation,  which  may  not 
be  approved,  I  shall  return  them  in  ten  days,  to  the  House 
where  they  originated,  with  the  objections,  I  may  have  to 
them,  I  am  sorry  to  tell  you,  that  it  is  altogether  out  of  my 
power,  to  comply  with  it.  The  Ordinance  for  this  govern- 
ment, has  placed  in  the  Governor,  an  absolute  negative  on 
the  bills  of  the  two  Houses ;  and  you  request,  that  it  may, 
by  me,  be  converted  into  a  kind  of  qualified  negative.  You 
do  not,  indeed,  require  that  should  the  objections  be  thought 
of  little  weight,  your  acts  may  become  laws,  without  the 
Governor's  assent.  That  would  have  been  too  directly  in 
the  face  of  the  Ordinance ;  though  without  it,  I  must  own, 
I  cannot  see  any  use  in  sending  the  objections  to  you." 


378  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

This,  and  some  other  occurrences  of  a  similar  character, 
which  were  manifest  deviations  from  his  usual  course,  not 
easily  accounted  for,  multiplied  his  opponents  very  rapidly, 
and  rendered  it  more  difficult  for  his  friends  to  defend  and 
sustain  him.  They  also  created  a  state  of  bad  feeling,  be- 
tween the  legislative  and  executive  branches,  and  eventu- 
ally terminated  in  his  removal  from  office,  before  the  expi- 
ration of  the  Territorial  government. 

The  Governor  was  unquestionably  a  man  of  superior  tal- 
ents, of  extensive  information,  and  of  great  uprightness  of 
purpose,  as  well  as  suavity  of  manners.  His  general  course, 
though  in  the  main  correct,  was  in  some  respects  injurious  to 
his  own  popularity ;  but  it  was  the  result  of  an  honest  exer- 
cise of  his  judgment.  He  not  only  believed  that  the  power 
he  claimed  belonged  legitimately  to  the  executive,  but  was 
convinced  that  the  manner  in  which  he  exercised  it,  was  im- 
posed on  him  as  a  duty,  by  the  Ordinance;  and  was  calcu- 
lated to  advance  the  best  interests  of  the  Territory.  It  was 
admitted,  that  he  placed  too  high  an  estimate  on  the  powers 
of  his  own  mind,  and  on  the  general  correctness  of  his  judg- 
ment; and,  though  modest  and  unassuming,  in  his  ordinary 
intercourse  with  society,  he  very  rarely  yielded  his  opinion 
when  deliberately  formed ;  however  erroneous  it  might  be 
in  the  estimation  of  others. 

He  had  been  accustomed  from  infancy,  to  mingle  in  the 
circles  of  taste  and  refinement,  and  had  acquired  a  polish 
of  manners,  and  a  habitual  respect  for  the  feelings  of  others, 
which  might  be  cited  as  a  specimen  of  genuine  politeness. 
It  seemed  to  be  his  desire,  that  persons  of  every  grade  should 
feel  at  ease  when  in  his  company.  And  it  may  be  said 
with  great  truth,  that  at  the  time  he  addressed  the  first  Ter- 
ritorial Legislature,  in  1799,  he  possessed  as  great,  if  not  a 
greater  share  of  the  confidence  and  respect  of  the  people 
of  the  Territory,  than  any  other  individual  residing  in  it. 

When  the  proposition  to  form  a  State  government  was 
warmly  agitated,  and  party  spirit  carried  to  unusual  lengths. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  379 

he  expressed  himself  freely  in  opposition  to  the  measure  :  and 
although  he  did  not  take  an  active  part  in  the  struggle,  yet 
the  mere  expression  of  his  preference,  identified  him  with 
the  party  opposed  to  the  change ;  and  not  only  so,  but  the 
influential  station  he  occupied  in  the  community,  and  the 
probable  result  of  his  communications  to  Congress  on  the 
subject,  rendered  him  an  opponent,  greatly  to  be  feared ; 
hence,  the  most  strenuous  efforts  were  made  to  weaken  his 
influence,  at  home  and  abroad.  To  accomplish  that  pur- 
pose, the  foibles  and  faults  of  a  long  life,  were  collected,  ex- 
aggerated, and  proclaimed  throughout  the  Territory.  False 
constructions  were  put  on  the  most  unexceptionable  actions 
of  his  life.  Ridicule,  as  well  as  falsehood,  was  employed 
against  him,  to  such  an  extent,  that  strangers  to  his  true 
character,  might  naturally  conclude,  that  he  possessed 
neither  talent  nor  integrity.  The  free  use  he  had  made  of 
the  veto  power,  and  the  collisions  which  had  occasionally 
taken  place  between  him  and  the  Legislature,  though  their 
intercourse  had  generally  been  harmonious  and  agreeable, 
were  urged  against  him  with  great  effect. 

It  was  believed  by  every  person,  who  witnessed  the 
change  of  treatment,  received  by  the  Governor,  from  the 
advocates  of  a  State  Constitution,  before  and  after  the 
agitation  of  that  subject  commenced,  and  who  had  noted 
the  circumstances  attending  it,  that  his  opposition  to  their 
project  was  the  chief  ground  of  their  opposition  to  him; 
and  that,  if  he  had  united  with  them  on  that  question,  the 
differences  of  opinion,  and  the  occasional  collisions  which 
had  occurred  during  his  administration,  would  have  been 
forgotten,  or  remembered,  only,  as  unimportant  errors  in 
judgment,  not  affecting  his  wisdom,  integrity,  or  patriotism. 
Be  that  as  it  may,  one  thing  is  very  certain;  that,  as  the 
discussion  of  that  project  progressed,  his  supporters  were 
fast  deserting  him,  and  before  it  closed,  a  majority  of  the 
persons  who  had  been  his  friends  and  admirers,  were  asso- 


380  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ciated  with  his  most  active  opponents,  and  seemed  to  have 
forgotten  that  they  had  ever  believed  him  to  possess  a  sin- 
gle virtue. 

The  efforts  made  to  injure  his  character,  and  weaken  his 
influence,  were  attributed  by  himself  and  his  friends,  to  un- 
worthy motives.  Some  alledged  that  the  hostility  of  his 
opponents  proceeded  from  a  belief,  that  it  was  necessary  to 
prostrate  him,  to  accomplish  their  own  political  views.  But 
on  a  calm  review  of  those  party  conflicts,  after  a  lapse  of 
more  than  half  a  century,  many  circumstances,  over  which 
the  mantle  of  oblivion  has  been  thrown,  might  be  uncover- 
ed, which  would  account  for  the  conduct  of  the  leaders  of 
both  parties,  without  ascribing  to  them  more  of  self-interest, 
or  less  of  honesty  of  purpose,  than  falls  to  the  lot  of  those 
who  are  now  called  consistent  politicians.  Some  part  of 
the  Governor's  conduct  was  condemned  by  his  best  friends, 
and  was  well  calculated  to  excite  a  warmth  of  feeling  in 
his  opponents,  which  might  have  led  upright  men  beyond 
the  limits  of  moderation,  and  even  of  justice. 

An  attentive  observer  of  that  talented  man,  could  not 
escape  the  conclusion,  that  knowledge  and  prudence  are 
not  synonymous ;  and  that  talents  of  a  high  order,  though 
united  with  integrity  of  purpose,  are  not  always  sufficient 
to  guide  their  possessor  in  the  path  of  duty  or  safety. 

The  Governor  had  many  fast  friends  remaining  in  the 
Territory,  who  received  a  full  share  of  the  abuse  in  which 
he  participated  so  largely,  and  who  were  not  slack  in  their 
efforts  to  sustain  him;  but  the  most  successful  defence  of 
his  character,  came  from  a  distant  and  unexpected  quarter. 
Mr.  Charles  Hammond,  a  young  lawyer  of  Wheeling,  then 
just  admitted  to  the  bar  of  the  Territory  —  unknown  to 
fame,  and  scarcely  heard  of  beyond  the  little  circle  in 
which  he  moved,  but  whose  talents,  subsequently,  raised 
him  to  the  highest  elevation  in  his  profession,  and  whose 
course  of  life  identified  him  with  the  history  and  politics  of 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  391 

Ohio,  was  induced  to  commence  a  series  of  numbers,  in 
the  Scioto  Gazette,  published  at  Chillicothe,  in  which  he 
defended  the  Governor  with  great  ability. 

At  the  time  he  engaged  in  that  defence,  he  had  no  per- 
sonal acquaintance  with  the  Governor — had  never  been 
introduced  to  him,  and  knew  him  only  as  he  did  other  dis- 
tinguished men,  from  his  life,  public  conduct,  and  writings. 
The  journals  of  the  day,  had  given  him  a  knowledge  of  his 
military  services,  in  the  French  war,  and  in  the  war  of  the 
Revolution,  and  also  of  the  manner  in  which  the  govern- 
ment of  the  Territory  had  been  administered;  from  which 
he  had  no  doubt  of  the  fact,  that  he  was  a  misrepresented, 
persecuted  man.  The  publication  of  that  defence,  placed 
his  character  and  conduct,  in  a  fair  point  of  light — refuted 
the  most  serious  charges  alledged  against  him,  and  eleva- 
ted the  youthful  writer,  to  a  high  stand,  in  public  estima- 
tion. 

Soon  after  the  Governor  was  removed  from  office,  he  re- 
turned to  Legonier  valley,  poor  and  destitute  of  the  means 
of  subsistence ;  and  unfortunately  too  much  disabled,  by 
age  and  infirmity,  to  embark  in  any  kind  of  active  busi- 
ness. During  his  administration  of  the  Territorial  govern- 
ment, he  was  induced  to  make  himself  personally  liable  for 
the  purchase  of  a  number  of  pack-horses,  and  other  articles 
necessary  to  fit  out  an  expedition  against  the  Indians,  to 
an  amount  of  some  two  or  three  thousand  dollars,  which 
he  was  afterwards  compelled  to  pay.  Having  no  use  for 
the  money  at  the  time,  he  did  not  present  his  claim  to  the 
government.  After  he  was  removed  from  office,  he  looked 
to  that  fund  as  his  dependence  for  future  subsistence ;  and, 
under  a  full  expectation  of  receiving  it,  he  repaired  to 
"Washington  City,  and  presented  his  account  to  the  proper 
officer  of  the  Treasury.  To  his  utter  surprise  and  disap- 
pointment, it  was  rejected,  on  the  mortifying  ground,  that, 
admitting  it  to  have  been  originally  correct,  it  was  barred 
by  the  statute;  and  that  the  time  which  had  elapsed,  afford- 


382  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ed  the  highest  presumption,  that  it  had  been  settled,  al- 
though no  voucher  or  memorandum  to  that  effect,  could  be 
found  in  the  Department.  To  counteract  the  alledged  pre- 
sumption of  payment,  the  original  vouchers,  showing  the 
purchase,  the  purpose  to  which  the  property  was  applied, 
and  the  payment  of  the  money,  were  exhibited.  It  was, 
however,  still  insisted  that  as  the  transaction  was  an  old 
one,  and  had  taken  place  before  the  burning  of  the  War 
office,  in  Philadelphia,  the  lapse  of  time  furnished  satisfac- 
tory evidence,  that  the  claim  must  have  been  settled,  and 
the  vouchers  destroyed  in  that  conflagration. 

The  pride  of  the  old  veteran  was  deeply  wounded,  by  the 
ground  on  wrhich  his  claim  was  refused ;  and  he  was  in- 
duced, from  that  consideration,  as  well  as  by  the  pressure 
of  poverty  and  want,  to  persevere  in  his  efforts  to  main- 
tain the  justice  and  equity  of  his  demand ;  still  hoping  that 
presumption  would  give  way  to  truth.  For  the  purpose  of 
getting  rid  of  his  solicitations,  Congress  passed  an  act,  pur- 
porting  to  be  an  act  for  his  relief;  but  which  merely  remo- 
ved the  technical  objection,  founded  on  lapse  of  time,  by 
authorising  a  settlement  of  his  demands,  regardless  of  the 
limitation.  This  step  seemed  necessary,  to  preserve  their 
own  character ;  but  it  left  the  worn  out  veteran,  still  at  the 
mercy  of  the  accounting  officers  of  the  Department,  from 
whom  he  had  nothing  to  expect,  but  disappointment.  Du- 
ring the  same  session,  a  bill  was  introduced  into  the  House 
of  Representatives,  granting  him  an  annuity,  which  wai 
rejected  on  the  third  reading,  by  a  vote  of  48  to  50. 

After  spending  the  principal  part  of  two  sessions,  in  use- 
less efforts,  subsisting,  during  the  time,  on  the  bounty  of 
his  friends,  he  abandoned  the  pursuit  in  despair,  and  re- 
turned to  the  Legonier  valley,  where  he  lived  several  vears 
in  the  most  abject  poverty,  in  the  family  of  a  widowed 
daughter,  as  destitute  as  himself.  At  length,  Pennsylvania, 
his  adopted  state,  from  considerations  of  personal  respect, 
and  gratitude  for  past  services,  as  well  as  from  a  laudable 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  393 

feeling  of  State  pride,  settled  on  him  an  annuity  of  three 
hundred  dollars,  which  was  soon  after  raised  to  six  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars.  That  act  of  beneficence  gave  to  the  gal- 
lant old  soldier  a  comfortable  subsistence,  for  the  little 
remnant  of  his  days,  which  then  remained.  The  honor  re- 
sulting to  the  State,  from  that  step,  was  very  much  en- 
hanced, by  the  fact,  that  the  individual  on  whom  their 
bounty  was  bestowed,  was  a  foreigner,  and  was  known  to 
be  a  warm  opponent,  in  politics,  to  the  great  majority  of 
the  Legislature  and  their  constituents. 

He  lived,  however,  but  a  short  time,  to  enjoy  the  bounty. 
On  the  31st  of  August,  1818,  that  venerable  officer  of  the 
Revolution,  after  a  long,  brilliant,  and  useful  life,  died  of 
an  injury  occasioned  by  the  running  away  of  his  horse, 
near  Greensburgh,  in  the  eighty-fourth  year  of  his  age ;  and 
it  is  somewhat  remarkable,  that  on  the  18th  of  the  succeed- 
ing month,  his  widow,  wrho  had  been  many  years  afflicted, 
partially,  with  mental  derangement,  died  suddenly,  at  about 
the  same  age. 

It  had  been  the  lot  of  that  highly  distinguished  man, 
from  the  commencement  of  his  military  career  in  Amer- 
ica, till  he  retired  from  the  office  of  Governor  of  the  North- 
western Territory,  to  maintain  a  constant  intercourse  with 
the  Indian  tribes,  sometimes  as  an  enemy  in  war,  but  more 
frequently  as  a  friend  and  counsellor  in  peace.  He  had 
learnt  their  character  in  the  days  of  their  greatest  power 
and  purity,  and  was,  therefore,  uniformly  the  friend  of  that 
unfortunate,  oppressed  people. 


CHAPTER   XXI. 

Character  of  the  North-western  Indians. — Misrepresentations  refuted. — Their 
intercourse  with  the  white  people. — Its  contaminating  influence. — Their 
degeneracy. — Their  final  expulsion  from  the  land  of  their  nativity. 

It  is  stated  in  a  former  chapter  that  a  memorial  was  sent 
to  the  Legislature  of  the  North-western  Territory,  by  Gov- 
ernor St.  Clair,  at  the  instance  of  the  missionaries  of  the 
church  of  the  United  Brethren,  (Moravians,)  who  had  formed 
establishments,  under  the  authority  of  Congress,  at  Shoen- 
brun,  Gnadenhutten,  and  Salem,  on  the  Tuscarawas  branch 
of  the  Muskingum  river;  on  which  a  law  was  passed,  to  pre- 
vent the  introduction  of  ardent  spirits  into  those  towns.  It 
was  also  stated  that,  for  a  short  time,  the  law  produced  a 
good  effect;  but  that,  as  the  white  population  increased, 
and  approached  nearer  to  the  villages,  it  was  found  impos- 
sible, any  longer,  to  carry  it  into  execution.  The  result 
was,  that  the  Indians  became  habitually  intemperate,  idle, 
and  faithless ;  the  missionaries  lost  all  their  influence  over 
them;  and  eventually  were  constrained  to  abandon  the  set- 
tlements in  despair. 

What  a  contrast  between  this  picture  and  that  which  was 
presented  to  the  pioneers,  when  they  first  visited  the  coun- 
try. The  natives  who  then  occupied  it,  were  untaught  and 
unpolished;  but  they  were  brave  and  generous.  The  art 
of  war  had  been  their  study.  The  chase  constituted  their 
business  and  amusement,  and  furnished  the  food  on  which 
they  subsisted.  The  warriors  were  too  proud  to  labor,  and 
imposed  that  drudgery  on  their  women,  as  is  the  custom 
of  all  nations,  in  which  Christianity  is  not  taught  and  prac 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY. 


385 


ticed.  They  claimed  the  entire  country,  alledging  that  it 
had  been  made  by  the  Great  Spirit  for  them  and  their  chil- 
dren forever. 

Being  unconscious  of  danger,  they  met  and  greeted  the 
pioneers  as  friends,  when  they  first  crossed  the  river  and 
entered  their  territory;  and  they  continued  to  treat  them 
as  such,  till  they  began  to  apprehend  hostile  designs  against 
themselves  and  their  country;  suspicions  of  which  were 
instilled  into  their  minds  by  British  traders,  very  soon  after 
the  American  settlements  began.  These  children  of  the 
forest  had  some  vague  notions  of  a  Deity,  to  whom  they 
were  responsible.  They  had  a  confused,  undefined  belief, 
in  a  future  state  of  existence.  They  had  a  general  im- 
pression, that  after  death,  the  Great  Spirit  would  send  them 
to  some  pleasant  region,  abounding  with  game,  and  fish, 
and  fruit.  That  they  would  carry  with  them  their  rifles 
and  their  dogs,  and  enjoy  the  same  gratifications  they  had 
been  accustomed  to  in  this  life ;  but  in  a  higher  degree  of 
perfection.  With  such  crude  notions  as  these,  they  lived 
and  died,  ignorant  of  any  correct  knowledge  of  the  duties 
they  owed  to  their  Maker,  and  to  their  fellow  men. 

That  unfortunate  race,  who  seem  to  have  been  destined 
by  Providence  to  utter  extinction,  have  been  misrepre- 
sented and  slandered,  no  doubt  to  palliate  the  guilt  of 
the  outrages  which  have  been  perpetrated  against  them. 
Among  other  falsehoods,  it  has  been  asserted,  confidently, 
but  without  a  shadow  of  argument  or  fact,  to  sustain  the 
assertion,  that  they  cannot  be  brought  to  a  state  of  civiliza- 
tion, or  be  induced  to  form  communities,  and  engage  in  the 
pursuits  of  agriculture  and  the  arts,  in  consequence  of  some 
physical  difference  between  them  and  the  Anglo-Saxon 
race.  This  hypothesis  is  contradicted  by  experience, 
which  has  abundantly  shown,  that  the  two  races,  when 
placed  in  the  same  situation,  and  acted  on  by  the  same 
causes,  have  invariably  resorted  to  the  same  expedients, 
and  pursued  the  same  policy. 
25 


386  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

This  averment  is  sustained  by  a  reference  to  the  white 
people,  who  have  been  taken  prisoners  in  childhood,  and 
brought  up  among  the  Indians.  In  every  such  case,  the 
child  of  civilization  has  become  the  ferocious  adult  of  the 
forest,  manifesting  all  the  peculiarities,  tastes  and  prefer- 
ences of  the  native  Indian.  His  manners,  habits,  propensi- 
ties, and  pursuits  have  been  the  same ;  his  fondness  for  the 
chase,  and  his  reluctance  to  labor,  the  same;  so  that  the 
most  astute  philosophical  observer  has  not  been  able  to 
discover  any  difference  between  them,  except  in  the  color 
of  the  skin ;  and  in  some  instances  even  this  distinction 
has  been  removed  by  long  exposure  to  the  elements,  and 
the  free  use  of  oils  and  paints.  There  have  been  cases  in 
which  the  children  of  white  parents,  who  have  been  raised 
among  the  Indians  from  early  infancy,  have  been  taken 
home  to  their  relatives  in  middle  life,  but  have  refused  to 
remain,  and  have  returned  to  the  tribe  in  which  they  were 
brought  up,  whose  habits,  feelings,  and  mode  of  life  they 
preferred. 

One  case  of  this  kind  occurred  within  the  knowledge  of 
the  writer.  A  female,  captured  in  infancy,  and  reared  by 
the  Indians,  was  brought  in  by  them  at  the  treaty  of  Green- 
ville, and  sent  home  to  her  relations  in  Kentucky.  She 
soon  became  so  discontented  and  restless,  that  in  spite  of 
all  their  efforts,  she  left  them,  returned  to  her  former  asso- 
ciates, and  was  again  happy. 

The  attempts  that  have  been  made,  at  different  times,  to 
improve  the  minds  and  cultivate  the  morals  of  these  peo- 
ple, have  always  been  attended  with  success.  Witness  the 
Cherokees  of  Georgia,  and  the  Wyandots,  at  Upper  San- 
dusky. From  1821  to  1828,  inclusive,  the  writer  of  these 
sketches  passed  through  the  latter  settlement,  almost  every 
year,  and  occasionally  twice  a  year,  which  gave  him  ftB 
opportunity  to  know,  that  they  were  devoting  themselves 
principally,  and  almost  exclusively,  to  agriculture  and  the 
arts;  and  were  making  rapid  advances  in  civilization,  when 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  3S7 

the  policy  of  government  compelled  them  to  abandon  their 
farms,  dispose  of  their  stock  and  other  property,  at  a  great 
sacrifice,  and  migrate  to  the  "  Far  West." 

The  imaginary  physical  difference,  pretended  to  exist  be- 
tween the  Europeans  and  the  natives  of  this  continent,  van- 
ishes at  once,  on  an  unprejudiced  comparison  between  the 
civilized  white  man,  and  the  civilized,  educated  Indian.  In 
what  respects,  it  may  be  asked,  have  Ross,  Boudinot,  Hicks, 
Ridge,  and  others,  differed  from  the  educated  men  of  our 
own  race?  Their  moral  sense  is  the  same — they  manifest 
the  same  taste ; — their  preferences  and  dislikes — their  hab- 
its and  manners  are  the  same  :  and  their  reasoning  powers 
are  equally  strong  and  active.  Inasmuch,  then,  as  the  re- 
claimed, educated  Indian,  becomes  assimilated  to  the  white 
man ;  and  the  European  brought  up  from  infancy  among 
the  Indians,  becomes  identified  with  them,  this  alledged 
difference  cannot  be  real, — it  must  be  imaginary. 

The  fact  is,  the  difficulty  of  civilizing  the  natives  of  this 
continent,  is  neither  greater  nor  less,  than  that  which  retar- 
ded the  improvement  of  the  barbarous  nations  of  Europe, 
two  thousand  years  ago.  Human  nature,  under  the  same 
circumstances  is,  has  been,  and  will  be  the  same,  in  all  ages 
and  countries.  Men,  uncivilized,  have  always  had  a  propen- 
sity to  roam — they  have  delighted  in  the  chase,  rather  than 
in  agriculture ;  and  both  history  and  experience  prove,  that 
nothing  but  necessity,  arising  from  such  an  increase  of  po- 
pulation as  destroys  the  game,  has  induced  men  to  settle  in 
communities,  and  rely  on  the  cultivation  of  the  earth,  for 
subsistence.  In  the  progress  of  civilization,  the  chase  has 
given  way  to  the  pastoral  state,  and  that  has  yielded  to 
agriculture,  as  the  increase  of  numbers  has  rendered  it 
necessary. 

The  difficulty  of  reclaiming  the  Indians  of  North  America 
from  savage  life,  may  be  ascribed  principally  to  two  causes : 
first,  the  almost  boundless  extent  of  forest  and  prairie,  which 
surround  them  on  all  sides,  filled  with  game.     Second,  the 


388  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

facility  with  which  they  learn  and  practice  the  vices  of 
white  men;  particularly  those  of  intemperance  and  idle- 
ness. The  one  invites  them  to  the  chase,  and  surpersedes 
the  necessity  of  the  labor,  and  the  drudgery,  which  agricul- 
ture imposes:  the  other  unfits  them  for  any  employment; 
and  especially  for  judging  and  deciding,  on  the  policy,  best 
calculated  to  advance  their  interest,  and  promote  their  hap- 
piness. If  it  were  possible  to  protect  them,  from  those 
vices,  till  the  forest  and  the  river  ceased  to  supply  them 
and  their  increase  with  food,  they  would  devote  themselves 
to  agriculture  and  the  arts;  in  the  same  manner,  as  the 
barbarians  of  other  times  and  other  countries,  have  done. 

Necessity  has  always  been  the  stimulus,  that  has  urged 
the  idler  to  industry.  Without  labor,  no  dense  population 
can  exist,  and  in  proportion  as  the  number  of  inhabitants 
in  any  district  of  country  have  increased,  industry  has  also 
increased,  and  agriculture  has  been  resorted  to,  from  neces- 
sity. As  soon  as  the  Cherokees,  and  the  Wyandots,  were 
surrounded  by  a  white  population,  and  their  territory  was 
so  contracted  as  to  cut  off*  their  dependence  on  hunting  and 
fishing,  they  became  farmers,  and  manifested  a  strong 
desire  to  till  the  earth,  and  cultivate  the  arts;  and  this 
would  have  been  the  choice  of  the  whole  Indian  race,  if  the 
policy  of  government  had  permitted  it. 

It  is  not  just,  to  consider  the  natives  of  this  country,  as  a 
distinct,  and  inferior  race ;  because  they  do  not  generally 
imitate  us,  when  we  not  only  remove  every  consideration 
that  could  induce  them  to  do  so ;  but  in  fact,  render  it  im- 
possible.    What  motive  of  ambition  was  there,  to  stimu- 
late them  to  effort;  when  they  were  made  to  feel,  that  they 
held  their  country  as  tenants  at  will,  liable  to  be  driven  ofF 
at  the  pleasure  of  their  oppressors?     As  soon  as  they  were 
brought  to  a  situation  in  which  necessity  prompted  them  to 
industry,  and  induced  them  to  begin  to  adopt  our  maimers 
and  habits  of  life,  the  covetous  eye  of  the  white  man  was 
fixed  on  their  incipient  improvements,  and  they  received 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  389 

the  chilling  notice  that  they  must  look  elsewhere  for  per- 
manent homes. 

They  have  also  been  charged  by  their  enemies  with 
treachery;  but  a  candid  examination  of  their  character,  be- 
fore they  learnt  the  vices  of  white  men,  will  show  this 
charge  to  be  untrue  in  the  sense  in  which  it  is  made.  It  is 
admitted,  that  it  was  their  practice  to  use  deception  against 
their  enemies,  and  that  the  study  of  that  art,  constituted  a 
branch  of  their  military  education.  They  always  thought  it 
honorable  to  deceive  and  injure  those  with  whom  they  were 
at  war,  by  any  means  in  their  power ;  however  dishonora- 
ble, in  the  estimation  of  civilized  nations;  but  in  time  of 
peace,  the  case  was  otherwise.  Then  the  white  man  might 
traverse  their  country — visit  their  hunting  camps  and  their 
villages  without  danger  of  molestation;  for  they  made  it  a 
point  of  honor,  to  protect  the  person  and  the  property  of 
those  who  confided  in  them.  These  remarks  apply  to  the 
time  wrhen  they  were  in  name  and  in  fact,  independent  na- 
tions and  undisputed  owners  of  the  country  they  occupied. 
Then  they  were  brave,  generous,  and  kind  to  their  friends  ; 
equally  prompt  to  avenge  insults  and  reciprocate  favors. 

Another  allegation  prejudicial  to  the  red  men  of  our  con- 
tinent is,  that  they  are  cowards ;  a  charge  which  has  arisen 
from  the  fact,  that  they  were  all  taught  from  infancy  to 
avoid  an  exposure  of  life,  in  cases  where  the  loss  of  it 
would  not  be  compensated  for,  by  the  object  to  be  gained. 
But  this  is  not  an  evidence  of  want  of  courage ;  it  is  com- 
mendable prudence,  dictated  by  wisdom;  and  was  in  them 
the  result  of  education.  So  far  from  being  cowards,  no 
other  people  have  furnished  more  cases  of  imminent  ex- 
posure and  self-devotion. 

The  philanthropist  cannot  restrain  the  tear  of  pity,  when 
he  learns  the  progress  of  intemperance  and  its  destructive 
effects  among  those  unhappy  tribes.  At  the  time  our  set- 
tlements were  commencing,  north-west  of  the  Ohio,  that 
hardy  race  were  its  acknowledged  owners  and  sovereigns. 


390  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

The  government  claimed  no  right,  either  of  occupancy  or 
soil,  but  as  they  obtained  it  by  purchase.*  The  entire 
country  from  Pennsylvania  to  the  Mississippi,  was  admitted 
to  be  theirs,  and  a  more  delightful  fertile  valley  cannot  be 
found  on  the  earth.  The  early  adventurers  from  the 
United  States,  to  this  valley,  found  it  filled  with  tribes 
of  happy  people,  uncontaminated  by  the  vices  that  pre  - 
vail  in  civilized  life,  enjoying  all  the  comforts  and  lux- 
uries which  they  supposed  the  world  afforded.  Their  for- 
ests and  prairies  were  filled  with  game,  and  their  rivers 
and  lakes  abounded  with  fish.  They  were  contented  with 
their  condition,  and  thankful  to  the  Great  Spirit  for  the  rich 
abundance  with  which  he  supplied  their  daily  wants. 

Unconscious  of  the  ruinous  consequences  that  were  to 
follow  their  intimacy  with  white  men,  they  ceded  to  the 
American  government  large  and  valuable  portions  of  their 
country  at  nominal  prices.  Those  lands  were  rapidly  set- 
tled by  Americans,  in  whose  purity  and  friendship  the  un- 
suspecting natives  had  great  confidence;  nor  did  they 
awake  from  that  delusion,  till  their  habits  of  sobriety  and 
morality  had  been  undermined,  by  the  unprincipled  white 
men  with  whom  they  associated;  and  until  the  vices  en- 
gendered by  intemperance  and  idleness  had  contaminated 
every  tribe. 

The  consequences  of  this  degeneracy  very  soon  termi- 
nated in  their  ruin.  The  hunting  excursion  ceased  to  be 
pleasurable ;  the  labor  of  raising  their  usual  crops  of  corn 
and  beans  became  a  drudgery;  and  their  chief  delight  wa- 
in the  excitement  produced  by  ardent  spirits.  The  conse- 
quence was,  that  their  subsistence  became  precarious ;  they 
often  suffered  for  food;  their  health  declined;  they  raised 


*  In  proof  of  this  assertion  the  reader  is  referred  lo  a  coiimniniration  made 
to  the  North-western  Indians  on  the  31st  of  July,  1793,  by  the  Commissioners 
of  the  United  States,  at  the  house  of  Captain  Elliott,  near  the  mouth  of  De- 
troit river;  an  extract  from  which  will  be  found  in  the  seventh  chapter  of  this 
book. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  391 

but  few  of  their  children;  their  self-respect,  their  dignity  of 
character,  and  the  heroism  inherited  from  their  ancestors, 
were  lost.  The  ravages  of  intemperance  and  its  kindred 
vices,  reduced  their  numbers,  and  scattered  their  tribes. 
They  became,  in  their  own  estimation,  a  degraded,  de- 
pendent race.  The  government,  availing  itself  of  their 
weakness  and  want  of  energy,  succeeded,  by  bribes  and 
menaces,  in  obtaining  the  best  portions  of  their  country, 
and  eventually  in  driving  them  from  the  land  of  their  birth, 
to  a  distant  home,  in  an  unknown  region. 

This  distressing  chapter  of  aboriginal  history  began  at 
the  treaty  of  Greenville,  in  1795,  and  terminated  in  less 
than  fifty  years.  The  writer  of  these  notes  witnessed  its 
commencement,  progress,  and  close.  Prior  to  that  treaty, 
there  had  been  no  friendly  intercourse  between  the  Indians 
and  the  white  men  of  the  United  States,  in  consequence  of 
the  war  which  existed  between  them.  That  intercourse 
and  its  destructive  consequences  began  immediately  after 
the  restoration  of  peace.  Until  that  time,  the  natives  were 
numerous,  powerful,  and  uncontaminated. 

The  yearly  journeys  of  the  writer,  to  attend  the  General 
Court  of  the  Territory  at  Detroit,  made  it  necessary  to  go 
through  some  of  their  villages,  and  convenient  to  visit  oth- 
ers, and  often  led  him  to  their  hunting  camps,  which  gave 
him  many  opportunities  of  seeing  them  in  their  villages 
and  on  their  hunting  excursions,  and  of  becoming  personally 
acquainted  with  some  of  their  principal  chiefs  and  warriors. 
At  that  time,  their  hospitality  was  limited  only  by  their 
means  of  indulging  it.  The  corrupting  influence  of  their 
new  associates  was  just  commencing,  and  had  made  but 
little  progress.  They  retained  the  distinctive  marks  of 
their  national  character.  Their  deportment  showed  that 
they  felt  conscious  of  their  strength. 

In  their  general  intercourse  with  white  people,  their  man- 
ners and  deportment  manifested  their  consciousness  of 
equality.      They  had  lost  nothing  of  the  self-confidence, 


392  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

which  they  possessed,  when  the  national  and  state  govern- 
ments admitted  their  independence,  and  met  them  in  coun- 
cil as  equals  and  friends.  They  were,  however,  uncon- 
scious of  their  comparative  numerical  weakness,  and  of  the 
corrupting  influence  of  their  new  associates.  In  a  few 
short  years  their  eyes  were  opened — their  delusion  van- 
ished, and  their  last  hopes  sunk  in  despair. 

It  would  be  unjust  to  form  an  opinion  of  the  original  in- 
habitants of  this  country,  by  a  reference  to  their  descend- 
ants, of  the  present  day.  In  the  short  period  of  half  a 
century,  they  have  been  so  changed,  that  scarcely  a  trace 
remains  of  what  they  were,  when  their  country  was  first 
entered  by  the  pioneers  of  our  race ;  an  event  which  sealed 
their  destiny. 

In  journeying,  more  recently,  through  the  State,  the  wri- 
ter has  occasionally  passed  over  the  ground,  on  which, 
many  years  before,  he  had  seen  Indian  towns  filled  with 
families  of  that  devoted  race,  contented  and  happy;  but 
he  could  not  perceive  the  slightest  trace  of  those  villages, 
or  the  people  who  had  occupied  them.  All  the  settlements 
through  which  he  passed  on  the  Maumee  and  the  Auglaize, 
from  Fort  Wayne  to  Defiance,  and  from  thence  to  the  foot 
of  the  Rapids,  had  been  broken  up  and  deserted.  The 
battle-ground  of  General  "Wayne,  which  he  had  often  seen, 
in  the  rude  state  in  which  it  was,  when  the  action  of  1794 
was  fought,  was  so  changed  in  its  appearance,  that  he 
could  not  recognize  it,  and  not  an  indication  remained,  of 
the  many  populous  Indian  villages,  he  had  formerly  seen, 
extending  many  miles  on  either  side  of  the  river.  Flour- 
ishing towns,  and  fields  cultivated  by  white  men,  covered 
the  ground,  which,  thirty  years  before,  was  the  property 
and  the  home  of  the  natives  of  the  forest. 

The  contrast  was  striking;  and  excited  a  train  of  un- 
pleasant recollections.  It  was  a  natural  enquiry,  "  Where 
are  the  multitudes  of  red  people,  who  were  formerly  ■••■ 
here,  amusing  themselves  on  these  Rapids,  taking  the  swilt 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  393 

muskelunge,  with  their  bows  and  arrows?"  They  were 
then  independent  and  undisturbed  owners  of  the  country, 
which  had  descended  to  them  through  a  long  line  of  heroic 
ancestors,  and  which  they  expected  their  children  would 
continue  to  possess,  when  they  were  gone. 

It  was  far  from  their  thoughts,  that  in  a  few  years  they 
would  be  expelled  from  those  homes,  and  driven  to  herd 
with  strangers,  in  a  strange  land.  They  did  not  expect  to 
hear,  so  soon,  the  same  chilling  salutation,  which  was  ad- 
dressed to  the  eloquent  bard  of  Mantua,  by  the  Roman  sol- 
dier, to  whom  his  paternal  villa  had  been  allotted,  by  the 
agrarian  laws  of  Italy. 

" Hoec  mea  sunt;  veteres  migrate  coloni." 

The  final  catastrophe  of  that  noble  race,  was  witnessed 
by  the  people  of  Cincinnati,  a  few  years  since,  when  the 
remnant  of  the  Wyandots,  the  last  of  the  braves  of  the 
Ohio  tribes* — "relliquias  Danaum  atque  immitis  Achilla"  — 
arrived  at  the  landing,  and  ascended  the  steam  ships  that 
were  to  convey  them  from  the  places  of  their  nativity,  into 
hopeless  banishment.  To  the  eye  of  the  humane  observer, 
they  seemed  to  linger,  and  turn  to  the  north,  as  if  to  bid  a 
last  farewell,  to  the  tombs  in  which  they  had  deposited  the 
remains  of  their  deceased  children,  and  in  which  the  bones 
of  their  fathers  had  been  accumulating  and  mouldering  for 
untold  ages. 

*        *        *        «  Quis  talia  fando  , 

Myrmidonum,  Dohpumve,  aut  duri  miles  Ulyssei 
Temper et  a  lachrymis?" 

*  Since  this  article  was  written,  a  remnant  of  the  Miami  tribe,  who  had 
been  suffered  to  remain  on  a  reservation,  made  by  treaty  in  their  favor,  in  the 
State  of  Indiana,  but  since  relinquished  to  the  United  States,  have  been  com- 
pelled to  remove.  During  the  month  of  October,  1846,  they  arrived  at  Cin- 
cinnati, about  seventy  in  number,  including  women  and  children,  and  em- 
barked on  a  steamboat,  bound  to  St.  Louis,  on  their  way  to  the  Far  West. 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

Early  land  laws  injudicious. — Sold  in  very  large  tracts. — Few  purchasers. — 
Settlement  of  the  country  retarded. — Laws  modified. — Sales  in  small  tracts. 
— Population  multiplied. — State  improvements  advanced. — Commerce  of  lit- 
tle value  for  want  of  a  market. — Produce  of  the  country  consumed  in  the 
expense  of  transportation. — Miami  Exporting  Company  got  up. — Its  objects. 
— Introduction  of  barges. — Schemes  to  improve  the  navigation  of  the  Falls. 
— Canal  attempted  on  the  Indiana  side. — Operations  of  the  Branch  Bank  of 
the  United  States  at  Cincinnati. — Tyrannical  proceedings  of  the  Agent  of 
the  parent  Board. — Immense  sacrifice  of  private  property. 

The  plan  originally  adopted  by  Congress,  for  the  sale  of 
their  land  in  the  Western  Territory,  was  injudicious,  and 
calculated  to  defeat  its  own  object.  The  first  ordinance 
passed  for  that  purpose,  proposed  to  sell  it  in  tracts  of 
two  millions  of  acres ;  the  second,  in  smaller  tracts  of  one 
million.  Under  that  ordinance,  the  contract  of  the  Ohio 
Company,  on  the  Muskingum,  and  that  of  Judge  Symmes 
and  his  associates,  between  the  Miamies,  were  made ;  the 
former  for  two  millions,  the  latter  for  one  million  of  acres. 
By  a  subsequent  ordinance,  passed  in  May,  1785,  seven 
ranges  of  townships,  of  five  miles  square,  were  surveyed 
on  the  Ohio  river,  and  the  Pennsylvania  line,  which  were 
divided  and  offered  for  sale,  in  quarter  townships;  first  at 
Pittsburgh,  and  afterwards  in  Philadelphia. 

In  May,  1796,  an  act  was  passed,  calculated,  in  a  small 
degree,  to  accommodate  the  people,  and  accomplish  the 
object  of  Congress.  That  law  directed  the  Surveyor  Gen- 
eral to  cause  the  public  lands  to  be  divided  into  townships 
of  six  miles  square;  and  one-half  of  those  townships,  taking 
them  alternately,  to  be  divided  into  sections  of  one  mile 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  395 

square,  and  the  residue  into  quarter  townships  of  three 
miles  square. 

In  the  year  1800,  another  law  was  passed,  ordering  a 
portion  of  these  lands  to  be  sub-divided,  and  sold  in  half 
sections,  of  three  hundred  and  twenty  acres.  When  this 
law  came  into  operation,  Land  Offices  were  established  at 
Cincinnati,  Chillicothe,  Marietta,  and  Steubenville,  and  a 
large  quantity  of  the  richest  and  most  productive  soil  was 
brought  into  market.  The  character  and  value  of  Western 
lands,  and  the  mildness  and  salubrity  of  the  climate,  were 
then  becoming  generally  known,  and  understood.  A  per- 
manent peace  with  the  Indian  tribes  had  been  established, 
and  public  attention,  throughout  the  Atlantic  States,  had 
been  directed  to  the  Ohio. 

Anterior  to  that  time,  the  tracts  of  land,  offered  for  sale 
by  the  government,  were  so  large,  that  men  of  limited 
means  were  unable  to  purchase.  The  scheme  wrhich  had 
been  established,  was  better  calculated  to  meet  the  views 
of  speculators,  and  advance  their  interest,  than  it  was  to 
relieve  the  poor,  industrious  laborer,  who  by  the  decree  of 
the  Fates  wras  compelled  to  eat  his  bread  in  the  sweat  of 
his  face.  The  smallest  tract  that  could  be  purchased  wras 
a  section,  of  six  hundred  and  forty  acres.  A  fractional 
section  lying  on  a  river,  or  on  the  boundary  of  a  separate 
district,  containing  a  smaller  quantity  than  six  hundred 
and  forty  acres,  could  not  be  sold,  but  in  connection  with 
the  adjoining  section. 

Although  this  approximation  towards  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  industrious  poor  was  of  great  importance,  yet 
it  wTas  not  sufficiently  so,  to  advance  the  settlement  of  the 
Territory,  with  much  rapidity.  But  the  act  passed  at  a 
subsequent  session,  which  ordered  the  sections  and  half 
sections  to  be  subdivided  and  offered  for  sale  in  quarter 
sections,  at  two  dollars  per  acre,  on  a  credit  of  five  years, 
wras  of  vastly  more  importance,  as  it  enabled  multitudes  to 
become  freeholders,  and  independent  cultivators    of  their 


396  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

own  domain,  who,  otherwise,  must  have  been  hirelings  to 
the  wealthy,  or  have  swelled  the  ranks  of  the  idle  and  the 
dissipated.  It  also  encouraged  and  increased  emigration 
to  the  western  country. 

Under  these  meliorations  of  the  rigor  of  the  land  system, 
large  portions  of  the  most  fertile  soil  in  the  Territory, 
which,  until  then,  had  been  placed  beyond  the  reach  of  the 
most  numerous  class  of  emigrants,  were  offered  for  sale  on 
such  easy  terms,  that  purchasers  flocked  to  the  country  from 
every  part  of  the  Union;  and  from  that  time  the  Miami  set- 
tlements, in  common  with  other  portions  of  the  eastern  dis- 
trict, began  to  populate  rapidly;  so  that,  in  less  than  three 
years  thereafter,  a  Convention  was  in  session,  forming  a 
Constitution  for  the  State  of  Ohio.  The  rapidity  with 
which  the  Territory  was  settled  and  improved,  from  that 
period,  has  perhaps  never  been  equalled,  in  any  age  or 
country. 

One  of  the  greatest  embarrassments,  under  which  the  peo- 
ple of  the  West  labored  at  that  early  period,  arose  from  the 
difficulty  of  conveying  their  products  to  market,  and  of  pro- 
curing such  foreign  articles  in  return  as  were  required  for  use 
and  comfort.  No  artificial  roads  had  been  made ;  canals  had 
not  been  thought  of;  the  natural  impediments  in  the  rivers 
of  the  country,  rendered  their  navigation  difficult  and  haz- 
ardous at  all  times ;  always  tedious,  and  often  impractica- 
ble ;  and  when  the  water  was  at  its  most  favorable  stage, 
the  distance  of  the  principal  market,  the  imperfect  means 
of  transportation,  and  the  low  price  of  produce  were  such, 
that  a  large  portion  of  the  avails  of  a  cargo  was  consumed 
by  the  expense  of  taking  it  to  market.  The  only  water- 
craft  in  use  were  pirogues,  flat-boats  and  keel-boats,  moved 
by  oars  and  setting-poles — "ratctn  conto  subigit."  The  ave- 
rage time  required  to  make  a  trip  to  New  Orleans  and 
back  to  Cincinnati,  was  six  months.  The  craft  made  use 
of  were  necessarily  small,  and  the  cargoes  proportionably 
light;  and  when  they  arrived  at  New  Orleans  in  flat-boats. 


NORTH.WESTERN  TERRITORY.  397 

which  could  not  be  taken  back,  the  boats  were  abandoned, 
and  the  hands  returned  by  land,  most  generally  on  foot, 
through  a  wilderness  inhabited  by  Indians,  of  seven  or  eight 
hundred  miles.  Pirogues  and  keel-boats  returned  loaded 
with  such  articles  as  the  market  of  New  Orleans  afforded. 
Under  such  disadvantages,  the  commerce  of  the  country  was 
nominal,  and  nothing  but  necessity  prompted  the  inhabi- 
tants to  engage  in  it.  The  farmer  had  no  motive  to  in- 
crease the  product  of  his  fields,  beyond  the  wants  of  his 
family,  and  of  emigrants,  or  "  new  comers,"  as  they  were 
called,  who  might  settle  in  his  immediate  neighborhood. 

For  many  years,  these  emigrants  created  the  only  de- 
mand which  existed  in  the  interior  settlements,  for  the  sur- 
plus products  of  agriculture.  Corn  and  oats  rarely  com- 
manded more  than  ten  or  twelve  cents  per  bushel;  they 
were  frequently  purchased  at  eight  cents,  and  wheat  from 
thirty  to  forty  cents.  The  average  price  of  good  beef  was 
one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  per  hundred,  and  pork  sold  from 
one  to  two  dollars,  according  to  quality.  At  such  prices  it 
is  evident,  that  following  the  plough  was  not  the  road  to 
wealth;  and  yet  the  farmers  lived  independently,  and  en- 
joyed as  much  real  comfort  as  they  have  at  any  period 
since.  They  were  content  with  the  plain  healthful  food 
produced  by  their  own  hands,  and  the  simple,  comfortable 
dress  they  were  enabled  to  acquire.  On  every  farm  was 
to  be  seen  a  small  flock  of  sheep,  and,  generally,  a  patch 
of  flax,  and  in  the  cabin  always  a  spinning  wheel,  and 
occasionally  a  loom.  They  did  not  crave  luxury  or  show, 
because  they  were  not  enjoyed  by  their  neighbors;  and 
they  were  content  to  live  and  appear  in  the  same  style,  as 
others  did  with  whom  they  associated.  But  those  days  of 
simplicity  have  passed  away;  and  it  is  for  the  moralist  to 
decide  whether  the  change  be  for  the  better  or  the  worse. 

During  this  period  of  depression,  when  the  produce  of 
the  country  would  not  .defray  the  expense  of  transporta- 
tion to  a  distant  market,  the  project  of  the  Miami  Export- 


398  BURNET'S  NOTES   ON  THE 

ing  Company  was  got  up.  The  plan  was  first  suggested 
by  Mr.  Jesse  Hunt,  an  experienced  merchant  and  pioneer. 
For  the  purpose  of  eliciting  information,  he  proposed  the 
question  to  the  merchants  of  Cincinnati,  and  the  farmers  of 
the  neighborhood,  whether  a  plan  could  not  be  devised, 
which,  with  the  aid  of  corporate  powers,  would  enable 
them  to  make  such  arrangements,  as  would  put  it  in  their 
power  to  reduce  the  difficulty  and  expense  of  transporta- 
tion; so  far  as  to  make  it  an  object  to  collect  the  produce 
of  the  country,  and  ship  it  to  New  Orleans.  The  enquiry 
resulted  in  a  general  belief,  that  a  scheme  could  be  devised 
for  that  purpose,  and  successfully  executed.  As  soon  as  it 
was  ascertained  that  this  was  the  prevailing  opinion,  and 
that  the  farmers  were  disposed  to  join  the  association,  Mr. 
Hunt,  with  the  aid  of  some  friends,  drafted  the  plan  of  a 
charter,  and  submitted  it  to  the  consideration  of  those  with 
whom  he  had  consulted. 

Although  there  was  a  strong  hope,  that  the  plan  would 
succeed,  and  the  interesting  purpose  of  the  association  be 
accomplished,  yet  there  was  some  doubt  on  the  subject;  in 
consequence  of  which  the  provision  was  introduced,  on 
which  the  banking  powers  of  the  company  were  founded; 
with  a  distinct  understanding,  that  if,  after  a  fair  experi- 
ment, it  should  be  ascertained  that  the  shipment  of  produce 
could  not  be  successfully  carried  on,  the  capital  might  be 
employed  in  banking  operations.  The  experiment  was 
fairly  made,  and  proved  to  be  a  failure. 

When  the  charter  was  before  the  Legislature,  there  wae 
no  motive  for  concealing  the  intention  of  the  company,  in 
case  their  first  and  main  object  should  fail.  At  that  time, 
there  was  not  a  bank  in  the  country;  no  prejudice  existed 
against  such  an  institution;  it  was  not  believed,  that  a  cash 
capital  could  be  raised,  sufficient  to  constitute  one;  and 
there  was  no  reason  to  think,  that  if  a  bank  charter  had 
been  asked  for,  it  would  have  been  denied.  It  was  the 
opinion  of  many  that  the  exporting  plan  would   fail;    and 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  399 

that  a  sufficient  amount  of  money  could  not  be  raised,  to 
render  a  bank  either  useful  to  the  country,  or  profitable  to 
the  owners.  The  charge  of  concealment  and  deception, 
made  against  the  persons  who  got  up  the  institution,  was 
without  foundation.  There  was  no  motive  for  concealment, 
as  it  was  evident  that  the  first  object  of  the  company  was 
the  shipment  of  the  products  of  the  country. 

At  the  time  the  association  was  formed,  the  agriculture 
and  commerce  of  the  West,  were  at  the  lowest  point  of 
depression.  Those  who  looked  forward  to  the  future,  and 
attempted  to  calculate  for  time  to  come,  from  what  they 
then  saw,  were  of  opinion  that  the  valley  of  the  Ohio,  rich 
as  it  was  in  the  materials  of  commerce  and  wealth,  would 
not  be  more  valuable  in  the  possession  of  its  civilized  own- 
ers, than  it  had  been,  when  it  was  the  hunting  ground  of 
the  aborigines,  unless  a  plan  could  be  devised,  to  facilitate 
the  exportation  of  its  products.  It  was  of  no  importance 
to  the  farmer,  that  his  fields,  with  careful  cultivation,  would 
yield  from  fifty  to  a  hundred  bushels  of  corn  per  acre, 
when  a  fourth  part  of  that  quantity  would  answer  his  pur- 
pose ;  there  being  no  market  for  a  surplus. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  country,  in  1803,  when  the  Miami 
Exporting  Company  was  organised,  may  discover  the  rea- 
sons why  it  was  got  up,  and  sanctioned  by  the  Legislature, 
without  looking  beyond  the  objects,  expressed  in  the  char- 
ter. The  great  improvements  effected  in  the  business  fa- 
cilities of  the  country,  since  that  period,  by  the  construction 
of  roads,  bridges,  and  canals — by  the  improvement  of  river 
and  lake  navigation,  and  above  all,  by  the  successful  ap- 
plication of  steam  power  to  manufacturing,  traveling,  and 
commercial  purposes,  have  driven  from  memory  the  diffi- 
culties and  embarrassments  of  primitive  times,  and  given 
the  appearance  of  fable,  to  the  most  faithful  description  of 
facts,  as  they  existed  before,  and  for  some  years  after,  the 
formation  of  the  State  government. 

The  first  improvement  in  the  navigation  of  the  West, 


400  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

and  in  her  commercial  operations,  was  the  introduction  of 
barges,  moved  by  sails,  when  the  wind  permitted,  and  at 
other  times,  by  oars  and  setting-poles,  as  the  state  of  the 
water  might  require.  These  vessels  were  constructed  to 
carry  from  fifty  to  a  hundred  tons.  In  wet  seasons,  if  pro- 
perly manned,  they  could  make  two  trips,  between  Cincin- 
nati and  New  Orleans,  in  a  year.  The  increased  quantity 
of  cargo  they  carried,  reduced  the  price  of  freight,  and  en- 
abled them  to  transport,  from  New  Orleans  to  Cincinnati, 
at  from  five  to  six  dollars  per  hundred,  which  was  below 
the  average  charge  of  carriage  across  the  mountains. 

From  that  time,  most  of  the  groceries,  and  other  import- 
ed articles  used  in  the  Territory,  were  brought  up  the  river, 
by  those  barges ;  and  as  the  price  of  freight  was  diminish- 
ed, the  quantity  of  produce  shipped  was  proportion  ably  in- 
creased. The  introduction  of  this  mode  of  navigating  the 
Ohio  and  Mississippi,  was  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  the 
West.  It  was  viewed  as  an  improvement,  destined  to  ad- 
vance both  her  commercial  and  agricultural  interests.  The 
project  was  suggested  and  carried  into  operation,  by  two 
commercial  houses  in  Cincinnati,  Messrs.  Baum  &  Perry, 
and  Messrs.  Riddle,  Be chtle  &  Co.  The  vessels  which  they 
constructed,  were  well  adapted  to  the  purpose,  for  which 
they  were  designed,  and  continued  in  use,  till  the  introduc- 
tion of  steamboats,  about  the  year  1817. 

Since  that  time,  the  people  of  Ohio  seem  to  have  forgot- 
ten the  fact,  that  they  are  situated,  from  fifteen  hundred  to 
two  thousand  miles,  by  water  communication,  from  any 
port  on  the  Atlantic  coast;  and  have  ascertained,  experi- 
mentally, that  the  superior  fertility  of  their  soil,  and  the 
great  facility  of  cultivating  it,  yield  a  full  equivalent  for  the 
difference  of  situation. 

As  the  settlements  and  business  of  the  valley  of  the  Ohio 
increased,  the  danger,  delay,  and  expense  of  passing  tin* 
falls  of  that  river,  became  a  subject  of  general  solicitude. 
The  impediment  they  created  in  the  great  highway  <>f  west- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  401 

em  commerce,  and  the  faint  hope  there  was,  of  its 
being  removed  in  any  reasonable  period,  detracted  very 
much  from  what  would  otherwise  have  been  the  estimated 
value  of  the  country. 

Men  of  intelligence  and  enterprise,  who  were  engaged 
in  the  river  trade  at  Pittsburgh,  Cincinnati,  and  interme- 
diate towns,  having  been  subjected  to  the  inconvenience 
and  expense,  caused  by  that  obstruction,  from  the  first  set- 
tlement of  the  country,  began  to  discuss  the  question, 
whether  the  difficulty  could  not  be  removed.  Estimates 
were  made  of  the  probable  cost  of  such  an  undertaking; 
and  also  of  the  loss  to  which  the  commerce  of  the  river 
was  subjected,  in  consequence  of  the  impediment.  Among 
others,  William  Noble,  one  of  the  early  settlers,  and  most 
enterprising  merchants  of  Cincinnati,  directed  his  attention 
to  the  subject,  and  took  great  pains  to  ascertain  the  ex- 
pense which  it  occasioned.  He  found,  at  that  early  day, 
when  the  commerce  of  the  West  was  in  its  infancy,  that 
the  loss  sustained  by  traders  residing  above  the  falls, 
amounted  in  one  year,  to  eighty  thousand  dollars,  inclu- 
ding storage,  drayage,  cooperage,  commissions,  and  the 
wages  of  hands  during  the  delay. 

This  and  similar  estimates  excited  general  attention,  and 
the  public  mind  became  alive  to  the  subject.  Various  pro- 
jects were  proposed  and  discussed.  Calculations  were 
made  by  different  individuals;  and  public  feeling  seemed 
to  indicate  that  something  would  be  done  without  delay. 
It  was  ascertained,  that  the  fall  in  the  bed  of  the  river, 
opposite  Louisville,  did  not  exceed  the  average  of  the  fall 
from  Pittsburg  to  the  Mississippi,  and  that  the  obstruction 
was  occasioned  by  a  dam  of  rock,  passing  across  the  river, 
and  extending  some  distance  into  the  country,  on  either 
side.  This  gave  rise  to  a  project  for  opening  the  channel, 
by  blowing  and  removing  the  rock ;  but  it  was  found,  that 
the  expense  of  that  plan  would  be  enormous,  if  it  were 
practicable.  It  was  also  found,  that  by  opening  a  passage 
26 


402  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

sufficiently  wide  for  boats  to  pass,  the  power  of  the  current 
would  be  so  increased,  as  to  render  the  descent  extremely 
dangerous,  and  the  ascent  impracticable.  It  was  therefore 
abandoned,  and  public  attention  was  directed  to  the  expe- 
diency of  attempting  a  canal. 

The  State  of  Indiana  was  anxious  to  remove  the  impedi- 
ment, which  affected  her  own  citizens,  in  common  with  all 
others ;  and  having  the  jurisdiction  on  the  river,  concurrent 
with  Kentucky,  secured  by  the  compact  with  the  common- 
wealth of  Virginia,  she  incorporated  a  company  in  1817, 
to  construct  a  canal  of  sufficient  dimensions,  to  pass  the 
largest  boats  then  navigating  the  river.  The  board  of 
directors,  named  in  the  act,  to  carry  on  the  work,  employed 
Mr.  Flint,  a  native  of  Ireland,  who  was  an  accomplished 
engineer,  and  had  been,  for  some  years,  attached  to  a  corps 
of  civil  engineers,  in  the  service  of  Napoleon. 

After  he  had  examined  the  ground  at  the  Rapids,  with  a 
scientific  eye,  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  and  taken  the 
necessary  levels,  and  made  such  examinations  and  calcu- 
lations as  were  necessary  for  the  purpose ;  he  selected  the 
Indiana  side  as  the  most  preferable.  In  his  report,  he 
pointed  out  the  difficulties,  which  have  since  been  found  to 
exist  on  the  Louisville  side;  and  assigned  the  reasons  why 
they  would  occur,  if  the  canal  should  be  constructed  at  that 
place.  He  made  his  calculations  with  care,  and  stated, 
that  a  canal  on  the  southern  side  of  the  river,  would  cost  a 
larger  sum  of  money,  than  it  would  on  the  northern ;  and 
that,  when  finished,  it  would,  in  certain  stages  of  water,  be 
difficult  and  hazardous  for  descending  boats  to  enter  it.  He 
also  stated  reasons  why  the  canal  would  be  liable  to  be  ob- 
structed by  deposits  of  mud  and  sand.  After  these  calcu- 
lations and  reports  had  been  made,  the  canal  was  located 
from  the  mouth  of  a  ravine  in  JcfFersonville,  to  the  foot  of 
the  Falls. 

It  is  an  important  fact,  in  reference  to  this  subject,  that 
in  the  rear  of  Jeffersonville,  and  contiguous  to  the  river, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  403 

there  were  two  or  three  large  ponds,  which,  at  that  period, 
were  almost  constantly  full  of  water ;  from  which,  in  wet 
seasons,  a  considerable  stream  ran  into  the  river.  They 
were  on  ground  so  high,  that  the  water  could  be  taken  from 
them  to  the  Ohio,  either  above  or  below  the  Falls.  It  was 
a  part  of  Mr.  Flint's  plan,  to  excavate  the  canal  down  to 
the  rock,  by  the  agency  of  those  ponds.  For  that  purpose, 
a  dam  was  erected,  at  an  expense  of  fifteen  hundred  dol- 
lars, to  turn  the  water  from  its  natural  channel,  and  lead  it 
into  a  small  ditch,  cut  on  the  line  of  the  canal. 

The  experiment  was  successfully  made,  and  in  a  few 
weeks,  an  immense  quantity  of  earth  was  washed  out, 
through  the  ravine,  into  the  river,  at  the  head  of  the  Falls. 
It  was  the  opinion  of  the  board,  that  the  experiment  would 
succeed,  to  the  full  extent  of  their  calculation ;  but  unfor- 
tunately, the  dam  which  had  been  constructed,  gave  way, 
suddenly,  but  not  until  the  efficiency  of  the  plan  had  been 
fairly  tested.  Suspicions  were  entertained,  that  a  breach 
had  been  made  in  the  night  by  some  persons  inimical  to 
the  project,  sufficiently  large  for  the  water  to  complete  the 
work  of  destruction,  before  morning. 

During  this  time,  the  people  of  Louisville  obtained  a 
charter  from  the  Legislature  of  Kentucky,  to  construct  a 
canal  on  their  side  of  the  river.  Estimates  were  made  of 
the  cost  of  the  work,  very  much  below  those  of  Mr.  Flint, 
and  below  what  has  since  been  found  to  be  correct.  Large 
subscriptions,  many  of  them  fictitious,  were  obtained,  and 
efforts  made  to  induce  a  general  belief,  that  the  work  would 
be  completed,  without  delay.  The  subscribers  under  the 
Indiana  charter  became  alarmed  at  the  idea  of  a  compe- 
tition which  might  prevent  the  completion  of  either  of  the 
canals ;  or  if  not,  might  destroy  all  hope  of  profit  from  their 
investments.  The  consequence  was  a  refusal  to  pay  the 
instalments  due  on  their  stock,  and  the  work  from  neces- 
sity was  brought  to  a  close. 

Had  the  dam  stood  a  few  months,  (the  wet  season  having 


404  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

just  commenced,  at  the  time  of  its  failure,)  the  operation  of 
the  water  would  have  satisfied  the  most  sceptical  of  the 
practicability  of  the  undertaking,  and  would  have  accom- 
plished such  an  amount  of  excavation  as  would  have  in- 
sured the  completion  of  the  work. 

William  Noble  and  J.  Burnet,  of  Cincinnati,  were  ap- 
pointed, by  the  law  of  Indiana,  two  of  the  commissioners 
for  carrying  it  into  effect.  Those  gentlemen,  feeling  an 
interest  in  every  effort  to  improve  the  condition  of  the 
country,  and  increase  the  facilities  of  its  commerce,  accept- 
ed the  trust,  and  engaged  in  the  enterprise,  and  expended 
six  or  seven  hundred  dollars  of  their  private  funds  before 
the  work  was  abandoned. 

For  the  purpose  of  raising  means  in  aid  of  the  project, 
the  charter  authorised  the  board  to  project,  and  carry 
through  a  lottery.  Under  that  power,  a  scheme  was  de- 
vised, tickets  were  printed,  and  placed  in  the  hands  of 
agents  for  sale.  The  undertaking,  however,  did  not  suc- 
ceed. Some  of  the  money  received  for  tickets,  was  ex- 
pended on  the  work,  but  much  the  larger  portion  of  it  was 
lost,  by  the  infidelity  or  insolvency  of  the  agents ;  in  conse- 
quence of  which,  the  lottery  was  not  drawn ;  and  the  whole 
amount  paid  for  tickets  was  a  loss  to  the  purchasers. 

In  anticipation  of  the  instalments  to  become  due  on  the 
subscription,  the  board  borrowed  money,  at  different  times, 
to  an  amount  of  fifteen  hundred  or  two  thousand  dollars ; 
for  which  individual  members  became  liable  as  indorsers, 
and  were  afterwards  obliged  to  take  the  notes  up,  without 
any  recourse  for  indemnity. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  board  at  Jeflersonvillc,  in  the  fall  of 
1819,  they  had  an  opportunity  of  seeing  the  bed  of  the 
river,  on  the  Falls,  at  the  lowest  stage  of  water  which  had 
occurred  from  the  earliest  settlement  of  the  country.  All 
the  water  of  the  river  passed  down  the  Falls,  through  a 
channel  in  the  bed  of  the  rock,  not  more  than  twenty-four 
P  »>t  wide;  which  was  divided  in  the  centre  by  a  ledge  of 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  405 

rock  about  a  foot  wide,  extending  the  whole  length  of  the 
channel,  having  very  much  the  appearance  of  masonry ;  so 
that  with  a  couple  of  twelve  feet  plank,  the  river  could 
have  been  crossed  dry  shod. 

The  channel  had  very  much  the  appearance  of  two  con- 
tiguous canals,  excavated  in  the  rock,  with  perpendicular 
sides,  separated  by  a  stone  wall,  having  here  and  there  a 
stone  broken  out.  These  openings  were  at  different  dis- 
tances from  each  other,  and  formed  communications  be- 
tween the  channels.  The  regularity  of  the  excavation, 
gave  it  the  appearance  of  being  artificial.  It  extended 
about  a  third  part  of  the  distance  from  the  head  to  the  foot 
of  the  Falls. 

The  momentum  of  the  water,  which  appeared  to  the  eye 
not  to  be  more  than  two  feet  deep,  was  astonishing.  Sev- 
eral attempts  were  made  with  a  hickory  handspike,  to  as- 
certain its  depth;  but  there  was  not  a  person  in  the  com- 
pany, who  could  force  it  into  the  water,  more  than  one 
foot,  before  it  was  thrown  to  the  surface,  by  the  power  of 
the  current.  The  day  before,  a  person,  supposed  to  be  in- 
toxicated, was  drowned  in  an  attempt  to  cross ;  and  on  the 
day  following,  his  body  was  found  below  the  Falls,  very 
much  bruised.  The  stream  being  confined  to  so  narrow  a 
channel,  and  passing  over  a  fall  of  seven  or  eight  feet  to 
the  mile,  exposed  to  the  eye  the  entire  bed  of  the  river, 
from  one  shore  to  the  other,  and  presented  a  view  more 
interesting  than  can  be  described. 

The  rocks  over  which  the  water  passed,  at  a  medium 
stage,  and  which  formed  the  most  dangerous  obstruction  to 
the  navigation,  were  entirely  bare.  They  were  connected 
with  the  lower  part  of  the  island,  and  passed  in  a  curvili- 
near form,  about  three-fourths  of  the  way,  from  the  island 
to  the  Indiana  shore,  extending  down  stream,  at  an  angle 
of  about  forty-five  degrees  with  the  river  bank.  The  bed 
of  the  stream  was  covered  with  a  great  variety  of  petri- 
factions ;  among  them  was  the  trunk  of  a  large  tree,  com- 


406  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

pletely  petrified,  portions  of  which  were  severed,  and,  with 
other  interesting  specimens,  collected  at  the  same  time* 
were  brought  to  Cincinnati,  and  deposited  in  the  museum. 

The  information  obtained  at  that  time,  was  of  great  im- 
portance to  the  pilots  of  the  place,  who  had  an  opportunity 
of  ascertaining  the  precise  situation  and  magnitude  of  the 
obstructions  in  the  channel;  and  of  discovering  what  por- 
tions of  the  river  bed  were  smooth  and  free  from  impedi- 
ment; and  also  to  ascertain  the  elevations  and  depressions 
in  the  surface  of  the  bottom,  by  which  they  might  know 
where  the  greatest  depth  of  water  was  to  be  found,  as  well 
as  the  position  of  the  impediments.  Such  another  oppor- 
tunity has  never  been  afforded  since  the  settlement  of  the 
country  began. 

In  1811,  when  the  charter  of  the  Bank  of  the  United 
States,  established  under  the  auspices  of  President  Wash- 
ington, was  about  to  expire,  an  application  was  made  to 
Congress,  on  behalf  of  the  company,  to  have  it  renewed. 
Similar  applications  were  made  by  the  people,  in  different 
parts  of  the  country,  setting  forth  the  necessity  of  such  an 
institution,  as  well  for  the  commerce  of  the  country,  as  for 
the  fiscal  concerns  of  the  government.  The  application, 
however,  was  rejected  by  the  politicians  who  then  con- 
trolled the  destinies  of  the  nation. 

In  1816,  when  the  subject  was  again  brought  before 
Congress,  most  of  those  who  had  opposed  the  application 
in  1811,  either  on  the  ground  of  inexpediency,  or  of  consti- 
tutional scruples,  had  become  satisfied  that  such  an  insti- 
tution was  necessary  for  the  collection,  safe  keeping,  and 
disbursement,  of  the  public  revenue,  and  was  therefore 
constitutional.  They  had  also  seen  the  consequences  of 
relying  on  State  institutions,  for  supplying  the  country  with 
a  circulating  medium.  They  knew  that  the  notes  of  the 
local  banks  were  then  greatly  depreciated  —  that  many  of 
them  had  failed  —  that  public  confidence  was,  in  a  great 
degree,   withdrawn   from  them   all  —  that  no   person   felt 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  407 

entirely  safe,  in  receiving  their  paper,  and  that  such  was 
the  derangement  of  the  finances  of  the  Union,  in  conse- 
quence of  it,  that  the  Treasury  had  nothing  to  offer  in  pay- 
ment of  its  liabilities  but  that  depreciated  currency.  Mem- 
bers of  Congress,  who  could  not  conveniently  return  home 
without  their  pay,  were  compelled  to  receive  that  wretched 
substitute  for  money. 

These  facts,  with  all  their  embarrassing  results,  had  been 
felt;  public  opinion  had  yielded  to  their  influence,  and  the 
business  community  had  united  in  opinion  in  favor  of  a 
National  Bank,  as  the  only  source  of  a  sound  currency, 
and  the  only  agent  that  could  restrain  the  State  institutions 
from  unreasonable  and  injurious  issues.  In  the  western 
country  this  feeling  was  universal.  Congress  participated 
in  the  general  sentiment,  and  in  April  1816,  they  passed  a 
law  establishing  a  Bank,  which  was  approved  by  Mr. 
Madison,  then  at  the  head  of  the  Executive  Government. 

As  soon  as  the  institution  wTas  organized,  applications 
were  made  from  all  parts  of  the  country  for  the  establish- 
ment of  branches.  Some  of  the  principal  towns  of  Ohio, 
put  in  their  claims,  and  sent  committees  to  Philadelphia, 
to  sustain  them.  The  success  of  those  applications  was 
considered  as  highly  important,  and  indeed,  absolutely 
necessary,  to  revive  and  sustain  the  crippled  business,  and 
credit  of  the  States.  The  best  paper  then  in  circulation  in 
the  western  country,  was  greatly  depreciated.  Every  arti- 
cle of  merchandise,  and  every  agricultural  product  had  its 
specie  and  its  paper  price;  in  consequence  of  which,  the 
estimated  loss  on  the  consumption  of  foreign  products,  was 
not  less  than  twenty  per  cent.,  to  which  should  be  added, 
a  further  sacrifice  in  the  purchase  of  bills  for  remittance, 
at  an  exorbitant  rate  of  exchange. 

Experience  is  always  the  best  teacher  of  wisdom,  and 
the  lessons  learnt  in  her  school  are  generally  safe.  What- 
ever the  prejudice  might  have  been  against  such  an  insti- 
tution in  other  States,  it  was  neither  general  nor  strong,  in 


408  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Ohio.  Her  people  had  not  forgotten  the  beneficial  opera- 
tions of  the  old  Bank,  whose  charter  had  expired;  and, 
with  few  exceptions,  they  were  friendly  to  the  establish- 
ment of  a  new  one.  The  mission  of  committees  from 
Ohio,  to  solicit  branches,  resulted  in  the  establishment  of 
two  —  one  at  Cincinnati,  and  the  other  at  Chillicothe. 
The  former  went  into  successful  operation,  under  the  su- 
perintendence of  an  intelligent  board  of  directors,  and  of 
Gorham  A.  Worth,  Esq.,  an  experienced  financier  of  New 
York,  who  had  been  appointed  cashier. 

The  amount  of  paper  discounted  at  that  office,  including 
domestic  and  foreign  bills,  was  supposed  to  be  less  than  at 
any  other  office,  in  a  place  of  the  same  population  and 
business ;  and  the  board  were  not  conscious  that  a  single 
bad  debt  had  been  made.  While  the  business  of  the  office 
was  thus  conducted,  the  parent  board  entered  into  an 
arrangement  with  the  Treasury  Department  of  the  United 
States,  to  receive  as  cash,  their  Land  Office  deposites  in 
the  western  banks.  The  terms  on  which  that  contract  was 
made,  were  not  communicated,  though  it  was  evident  that 
the  Bank  of  the  United  States  must  have  been  allowed  a 
heavy  discount,  by  the  Treasury  Department,  as  the  de- 
posites consisted  entirely  of  depreciated  paper,  not  worth 
more,  on  an  average,  than  sixty,  or  at  most,  seventy  cents 
on  the  dollar. 

About  nine  hundred  thousand  dollars  of  that  trash,  were 
sent  to  the  office  at  Cincinnati,  with  directions  to  collect 
the  amount  from  the  Banks  by  which  it  had  been  issued. 
The  best  of  it  was  passing  at  a  discount  of  thirty  per  cent, 
and  upwards.  Some  of  the  Banks  had  failed  entirely,  and 
all  of  them  had  stopped  specie  payments.  Under  those 
circumstances  it  was  impossible  to  execute  the  order,  of 
which  notice  was  immediately  given  to  the  parent  board. 
The  directors  of  the  office  were  of  opinion,  that  the  most 
advantageous  disposition  that  could  be  made  of  that  per- 
ishing paper,  was  to  loan  it  at  par,  on  the  best  security  that 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  409 

could  be  obtained ;  as  they  knew  it  was  absolutely  impos- 
sible for  the  institutions,  from  which  it  issued,  to  redeem  it 
then,  whatever  might  be  the  case  thereafter. 

This  plan  was  communicated  to  the  parent  board,  and 
further  instructions  requested.  No  response  having  been 
received,  and  the  paper  daily  becoming  less  valuable,  the 
officers  of  the  branch  took  it  for  granted  that  their  sug- 
gestion was  approved;  and  proceeded,  forthwith,  to  loan 
the  paper,  as  par  funds,  on  the  same  principles  that  govern- 
ed them,  in  other  cases.  In  a  few  months,  nearly  the 
whole  amount  was  disposed  of,  on  security  which  was  be- 
lieved to  be  good.  About  three-fourths  of  it  proved  to  be 
so;  every  cent  of  which,  principal  and  interest,  was  col- 
lected. That  amount  exceeded  the  value  of  the  whole  re- 
mittance, if  the  residue  had  been  lost;  this,  however,  was 
not  the  case.  A  large  portion  of  the  remaining  fourth  was 
also  collected;  so  that  the  sum  saved,  fell  but  very  little 
short  of  the  nominal  amount  of  the  remittance ;  and  even 
that  deficiency  would  have  been  much  less  than  it  was, 
had  it  not  been  for  the  distressing  pressure  produced  by 
the  sudden  discontinuance  of  the  office,  accompanied  by  an 
order,  promptly  executed,  to  put  in  suit  every  debt  due  to 
the  institution,  without  delay. 

It  is  impossible  for  a  person,  who  did  not  see  the  reckless 
course  of  Mr.  Wilson,  the  Cashier  and  agent  of  the  mother 
Bank,  to  form  an  adequate  idea  of  the  desolation  which  it 
produced.  The  business  of  Cincinnati  and  its  vicinity  was 
prostrated ;  many  of  her  most  intelligent  business  men  were 
ruined ;  and  she  did  not  recover  from  the  shock,  for  many 
years.  In  1821  and  1822,  when  this  work  of  desolation 
was  going  on,  the  whole  country  was  laboring  under  great 
pecuniary  embarrassment.  Money  was  not  to  be  had,  on 
any  terms.  Creditors  found  it  necessary,  every  where,  to 
indulge  their  debtors:  and  without  such  indulgence,  the 
entire  West  must  have  become  a  community  of  bankrupts. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things,  when  this  severe  blow  was 


410  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

inflicted  on  the  people  of  Cincinnati.  In  carrying  out  the 
order,  every  debtor  to  the  institution,  however  wealthy,  was 
prosecuted  to  judgment  and  execution.  There  were  a  few 
who  obtained  a  short  respite,  by  giving  mortgages  on  real 
estate,  with  power  to  confess  judgment;  but  in  the  end 
they  suffered  more  severely  than  those  who  permitted  the 
law  to  take  its  course. 

It  is  a  fact,  highly  honorable  to  the  persecuted  debtors  of 
that  institution,  that  the  statute  of  usury  was  not  plead,  in 
a  single  instance ;  though  it  was  a  fact,  easy  of  proof,  that 
in  at  least  half  of  the  cases,  the  defendants  did  not  receive 
from  the  bank  more  than  sixty,  or  at  most,  seventy  per 
cent,  of  the  amount  for  which  they  gave  their  notes. 

It  was  understood,  that  Mr.  Wilson,  who  had  plenary 
powers  to  act  as  his  judgment  might  dictate,  adopted  this 
plan,  on  his  own  responsibility,  but  it  was  subsequently  ap- 
proved by  the  mother  board.  He  assigned  as  the  reason 
for  his  conduct,  the  false  pretence,  that  the  managers  of  the 
office  had  loaned  the  funds  in  their  possession,  with  a  pro- 
fusion that  proved  them  to  be  unworthy  of  confidence.  The 
fact,  however,  was  as  stated  above,  that,  until  the  time  of 
receiving  the  Land  office  deposites,  the  discounts  at  Cin- 
cinnati were  less  than  the  population  and  business  of  the 
city  would  have  justified,  and  were  perfectly  secure.  The 
excess  complained  of,  resulted  entirely  from  the  loans 
which  were  made,  to  save  the  depreciated  paper,  cast  on 
the  office,  by  the  arrangement  with  the  Treasury. 

The  institution  was  very  unfortunate,  in  the  selection  of 
Mr.  Wilson,  as  its  agent.  Though  a  correct  accountant 
and  probably  an  honest  man,  he  was  weak  and  prejudiced, 
open  to  flattery,  and  very  easily  imposed  on.  His  charac- 
ter, at  Cincinnati,  was  soon  penetrated,  and  he  became  the 
tool  and  the  dupe  of  men  who  knew  how  to  use  him. 

After  his  return  to  Philadelphia,  for  the  purpose  of  justi- 
fying the  steps  he  had  taken,  an  exaggerated  statement 
was  published,  calculated  to  create  a  belief,  that  the  Bank 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  411 

would  sustain  a  heavy  loss,  by  the  operations  of  their  office 
in  Cincinnati.  The  fact,  however,  was  very  much  the  re- 
verse. They  received  their  own  with  triple  usury.  Every 
dollar  of  capital  furnished  the  branch,  including  the  Land 
office  trash,  charged  as  par  funds,  has  been  repaid,  and 
they  have  made  a  very  large  profit  on  real  estate,  taken 
from  their  debtors,  at  their  own  valuation,  which  in  many 
instances  did  not  exceed  half  the  amount  of  its  intrinsic 
value. 


CHAPTER   XXIII. 

Contract  of  Judge  Symmes  with  the  Board  of  Treasury. — His  proposition 
to  purchase  two  millions  of  acres,  entitling  him  to  College  lands. —  De- 
posite  of  money  on  account. — Misunderstanding  with  Congress. — Contract 
closed  by  agents  for  one  million  of  acres. —  College  lands  thereby  relin- 
quished.— Terms  of  sale  and  settlement  established. — Published  at  Trenton. 
— Progress  of  the  Miami  settlements. — History  of  the  College  township. 

It  is  proposed  in  this  chapter  to  state  the  nature  of  the 
contract  of  John  C.  Symmes  and  his  associates,  for  lands 
between  the  Miami  rivers,  and  give  some  of  the  facts  con- 
nected with  the  purchase.  It  is  generally  known,  that  at 
the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  war,  each  State  set  up  an 
exclusive  claim  to  the  unappropriated  land  within  the  limits 
of  its  charter.  Those  States  which  had  no  vacant  land,  of 
which  number  was  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  remonstrated 
against  the  claim,  as  unjust  and  inequitable.  They  con- 
tended, that  as  the  war  had  been  sustained,  and  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  country  acquired  by  the  blood  and  treasure 
of  all  the  States,  every  thing  which  had  been  wrested  from 
the  crown,  in  the  struggle,  belonged  to  the  United  States, 
in  their  confederate  character,  as  a  matter  of  right;  and 
should  be  held  for  their  joint  and  equal  benefit. 

There  was  much  excitement  on  that  subject,  and  propo- 
sitions were  made  in  the  public  prints  of  the  day,  advising 
the  destitute  States  to  seize  on  portions  of  those  vacant 
lands,  for  their  own  use.  To  allay  the  ferment,  Congress 
made  strong  appeals  to  the  justice  and  patriotism  of  the 
States,  holding  those  claims,  to  make  liberal  cessions  to 
Congress,  for  the  common  benefit  of  the  Union.     That  re- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  413 

quisition  was  complied  with,  by  several  of  the  States. 
Virginia  made  a  cession  of  the  entire  territory,  north-west 
of  the  Ohio;  and  Connecticut  ceded  all  her  claim  to  the 
same  territory,  excepting  that  district,  on  Lake  Erie,  known 
by  the  name  of  "the  Connecticut  Reserve." 

Soon  after  these  cessions  were  made,  Congress  passed 
an  ordinance  to  sell  and  dispose  of  the  ceded  territory. 
Their  first  sale  was  a  tract  of  two  millions  of  acres,  on 
either  side  of  the  Muskingum  river,  to   a   New   England 
company  represented  by  Sargent,  Cutler,  and  others.     Im- 
mediately thereafter,  John  Cleves  Symmes,  then  Chief  Jus- 
tice of  New  Jersey,  proposed  to  a  number  of  his  friends, 
most  of  whom  had  been  officers  in  the  Revolutionary  army, 
to  join  him  in  purchasing  a  tract  of  two  millions  of  acres, 
between  the  Miami  rivers.     They  agreed  to  take  limited 
interests  in  such  a  contract,  provided  a  plan  was  devised 
for   the  management  and   disposal  of  it,   which  to  them 
should  appear  safe  and  prudent.     On  that  intimation,  Mr. 
Symmes  drew  up  a  plan,  which  he  submitted,  and  which, 
being  approved  of,  he  published  in  pamphlet  form,  entitled 
"Terms  of  sale  and  settlement  of  Miami   Lands."     [See 
Appendix  A-B.]     He  then  submitted  a  proposition  to  Con- 
gress, on  the  29th  of  August,  1787,  to  purchase,  for  himself 
and  associates,  all  the  land  lying  between  the  Miami  rivers, 
south  of  a  line  drawn  due  west  from  the  western  termina- 
tion of  the  northern  boundary  of  the  grant  to  Sargent,  Cut- 
ler &  Co.,  on  the  same  terms  that  had  been  granted  to  that 
Company,  excepting  only,  that  instead  of  two  townships 
for  the  use  of  an  University,  only  one  might  be  assigned 
him  for  the  use  of  an  academy. 

This  application  was  referred  to  the  Board  of  Treasury, 
to  take  order,  [See  Congress  Journal,  Vol.  XII.  page  150.] 
At  the  same  time,  he  paid  into  the  Treasury  about  eighty- 
two  thousand  dollars,  the  principal  part  of  which  had  been 
advanced  by  his  associates.  His  proposition  having  been 
accepted,  and  the  first  payment  deposited,  he  did  not  wait 


414  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

to  close  his  contract  by  a  formal  instrument,  duly  executed, 
but  immediately  set  out  for  the  western  country,  with  a 
view  of  exploring  his  purchase.  Congress,  on  learning 
that  fact,  and  recollecting  the  proposition  which  had  been 
recently  made,  in  some  of  the  public  prints,  in  New  Jersey 
and  elsewhere,  on  the  subject  of  Western  lands,  became 
alarmed.  It  was  intimated  to  them,  that  the  object  of  the 
Judge  was  to  get  possession,  and  then  set  them  at  defiance. 
Under  that  impression,  a  resolution  was  offered,  ordering 
Colonel  Harmar,  who  was  stationed  with  his  regiment  be- 
low Pittsburgh,  to  dispossess  him,  and  directing  the  ex- 
pense to  be  paid  out  of  the  money  deposited,  and  the  resi- 
due to  be  returned. 

Fortunately,  Doctor  Boudinot  and  General  Dayton,  two 
of  his  associates,  were  in  Congress  at  the  time,  and  were 
able  to  make  such  explanations,  as  induced  a  withdrawal 
of  the  resolution,  on  their  assurance  that  the  contract 
should  be  executed,  in  due  form,  without  unnecessary 
delay.  To  comply  with  that  engagement,  they  dispatched 
Daniel  Marsh,  one  of  the  associates,  to  go  in  pursuit  of  the 
Judge,  and  induce  him  to  return,  or  to  execute  a  power  of 
attorney,  authorising  some  of  his  friends  to  complete  the 
contract  for  him.  Mr.  Marsh  overtook  him  at  Pittsburgh, 
preparing  to  descend  the  river.  Without  hesitation,  he 
gave  a  letter  of  attorney,  authorising  his  associates,  Jona- 
than Dayton  and  Daniel  Marsh,  to  execute  the  contract  in 
such  form  as  they  might  see  proper.  Mr.  Marsh  then 
returned,  and  the  Judge  proceeded  to  the  Miami  country. 

As  soon  as  the  power  of  attorney  was  received,  the 
agents  consulted  with  their  associates,  and  on  their  advice, 
executed  a  contract  of  three  parts,  on  the  15th  of  October, 
1788,  between  the  Commissioners  of  the  Board  of  Treasury, 
of  the  first  part,  Jonathan  Dayton  and  Daniel  Marsh,  of 
the  second  part,  and  John  C.  Symmes  and  his  associates, 
of  the  third  part. 

By  that  contract  the  quantity  of  land  named  in  his  propo- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  415 

sition  to  the  Board  of  Treasury,  was  reduced  to  one  million 
of  acres;  and  the  south  boundary,  instead  of  running  from 
one  Miami  to  the  other,  according  to  the  first  proposition, 
terminated  at  a  point  on  the  Ohio  river,  twenty  miles  above 
the  mouth. of  the  Big  Miami,  which  on  survey,  was  found  to 
be  within  the  limits  of  Cincinnati — thence  northwardly,  par- 
allel with  the  general  course  of  the  Big  Miami  for  quantity. 

The  contract  contained  a  stipulation,  that  if  Symmes,  the 
party  of  the  third  part,  should  neglect  or  refuse  to  execute  it, 
it  should  inure  to  the  benefit  of  the  parties  of  the  second 
part,  and  their  associates ;  who  covenanted,  in  that  case  to 
perform  it  themselves.  The  price  to  be  paid  for  the  land 
was  two-thirds  of  a  dollar  per  acre,  payable  in  certificates 
of  debt  due  from  the  United  States,  worth  at  that  time,  five 
shillings  in  the  pound.*  The  specie  price  of  the  land  on 
that  estimate  was  reduced  to  fifteen  pence  per  acre.  The 
interest  due  on  the  certificates,  was  not  to  be  received  in 
payment;  but  for  that  amount,  new  certificates  denomin- 
ated "Indents,"  were  issued  at  the  Treasury  Department. 

By  one  of  the  stipulations  of  the  contract,  the  purchasers 
were  at  liberty  to  pay  one-seventh  part  of  the  consideration 
in  Military  Land-warrants,  issued  by  the  United  States,  to 
the  officers  and  soldiers  of  the  Revolutionary  War.  They 
contracted  to  pay  the  consideration,  in  six  equal  semi-annual 
instalments,  and  on  the  payment  of  each  instalment,  they 
were  entitled  to  receive  a  patent,  for  a  proportionate  part 
of  the  lands. 

The  personal  interest  Mr.  Symmes  was  to  have  in  the 
contract,  is  shown  distinctly,  in  the  plan  of  sale,  adopted 


*  The  ordinance  for  the  sale  of  the  public  lands,  under  which  the  Mus- 
kingum and  the  Miami  contracts  were  made,  estimated  their  value  at  one  dol- 
lar per  acre;  but  as  they  were  then  offered  in  very  large  tracts,  it  contained  a 
provision,  that  one-third  of  that  sum  should  be  deducted  from  the  price  to  be 
charged,  on  account  of  bad  land,  and  land  covered  with  water;  so  that  the 
price  really  paid,  under  those  contracts,  was  two-thirds  of  a  dollar,  or  five 
shillings  Pennsylvania  currency,  per  acre. 


416  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

and  published  by  him,  in  1787.  [See  appendix  B.]  As  is 
stated  in  that  document,  he  set  apart  for  his  own  use  and 
benefit,  the  entire  township,  tying  lowest  down  in  the  point, 
formed  by  the  Ohio  and  Great  Miami  rivers,  together  with 
the  three  fractional  townships  lying  west,  and  south,  be- 
tween it  and  those  rivers ;  estimated  to  contain  forty  thou- 
sand acres.  He  stipulated  to  pay  for  those  lands  him- 
self, and  that  the  profit  he  might  make  on  the  sale  of 
them,  should  be  the  only  reward  he  would  receive  for  his 
time  and  trouble,  in  attending  to  the  business.  That  pro- 
position was  acquiesced  in  by  his  associates,  and  on  the 
2d  of  March  following  (1788,)  he  sold  an  undivided  moiety, 
of  his  entire  reservation  to  Elias  Boudinot  of  Elizabethtown, 
New  Jersey,  at  an  advanced  price,  agreed  on  between  them. 
[See  Appendix,  F.] 

It  was  stipulated,  that  the  associates  should  have  the  pri- 
vilege of  selecting,  and  locating  as  much  of  the  residue  of 
the  purchase,  as  they  saw  proper  to  take,  at  the  contract 
price,  and  the  community  at  large,  were  invited  to  become 
associates,  and  avail  themselves  of  that  privilege.  To  in- 
duce them  to  do  so  without  loss  of  time,  it  was  stipulated 
that  after  the  1st  day  of  May  then  next,  the  price  of  the 
land  should  be  a  dollar  per  acre ;  and  that  it  would  be  still 
further  increased,  as  the  settlement  of  the  country  would 
justify :  and  it  was  expressly  stipulated,  that  all  the  money 
received  on  those  sales,  above  the  Congressional  price, 
should  be  deposited  with  the  Register;  and  expended  in 
opening  roads,  and  erecting  bridges,  for  the  benefit  of  the 
settlement.  It  was  also  stipulated,  that  a  Register  should 
be  appointed  by  the  associates  to  superintend  the  location 
of  the  land,  and  to  receive  and  apply  the  surplus  money  to 
the  purposes  before  mentioned.  This  stipulation,  however, 
was  never  performed — Mr.  Symmes  acted  as  Register  him- 
self— received  all  the  money  paid  as  well  after,  as  before 
the  augmentation  of  the  price,  and  applied  it  to  his  own 
use. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  417 

The  plan  contained  another  provision,  well  calculated  to 
hasten  the  settlement  of  the  country,  but  which  in  conse- 
quence of  the  loose,  vague  terms  in  which  it  was  couched, 
and  the  omission  to  appoint  a  Register,  was  one  of  the 
the  most  fruitful  sources  of  litigation,  in  the  early  settle- 
ment of  the  Miami  Purchase. 

The  provision  referred  to,  is  that  which  required  every 
locator,  within  two  years  from  the  time  of  entering  his  loca- 
tion, to  place  himself  or  some  other  person  on  the  land  ;  or 
in  some  station  of  defence,  and  begin  an  improvement  on 
every  tract,  if  it  could  be  done  with  safety,  and  to  continue 
such  improvement  seven  years,  provided  they  were  not  dis- 
turbed by  the  Indians  for  that  period ;  on  the  penalty  of  sub- 
jecting to  forfeiture,  one  sixth  part  of  each  tract;  which  the 
Register  was  authorised  to  lay  off,  at  the  north  east  corner, 
in  a  regular  square,  and  grant  to  any  volunteer  settler,  who 
should  first  apply  and  perform  what  was  required  of  the 
first  locator. 

Had  the  conditions  on  which  those  forfeitures  depended, 
and  the  manner  in  which  they  were  to  be  granted  to  volun- 
teer settlers,  been  stated  with  clearness  and  precision,  nei- 
ther the  wisdom  of  the  project,  nor  the  equity  of  the  volun- 
teer claimant,  after  he  had  performed  the  service,  on  which 
his  title  was  to  depend,  would  have  been  questioned;  but 
the  indefinite,  confused,  phraseology,  used  in  the  pamphlet, 
rendered  it  impossible  to  ascertain  the  meaning  of  the  pro- 
vision, and  the  omission  to  appoint  a  Register,  to  whom 
the  power  of  granting  forfeitures  was  to  be  exclusively  con- 
fided, made  it  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  carry  it  literally 
into  effect.  The  consequence  was,  that  it  became  doubtful 
whether  on  legal  grounds,  any  of  those  claims  could  be 
maintained. 

The  prevailing  impression  on  the  public  mind,  was  de- 
cidedly in  their  favor ;  and  whenever  the  claimant  could 
make   out  a  plausible   case,  he  was  certain  of  success. 
When  they  first  became  a  subject  of  litigation,  an  attempt 
27 


418  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

was  made  to  induce  the  Court  to  apply  to  them  the  rigid 
principles,  on  which  forfeitures  were  sustained.  If  they 
had  done  so,  it  was  the  better  opinion,  that  there  was  not 
a  forfeiture  title  in  the  Miami  Purchase,  which  could  have 
been  maintained.  The  Court,  however,  declined  to  do  so, 
and  permitted  the  jury,  in  each  case,  to  be  governed  by  the 
apparent  equity,  which  it  presented. 

For  the  convenience  of  those  who  desired  to  turn  in  Mil- 
itary Warrants,  in  payment  of  land,  General  Dayton  was 
appointed  to  receive  them;  and  subsequently  the  3d  entire 
range  of  townships  was  conveyed  to  him,  in  trust,  for  the 
persons  to  whom  the  Warrants  belonged.  From  that  cir- 
cumstance it  obtained  the  name  of  the  Military  Range. 

As  the  contract  with  the  Board  of  Treasury,  required  the 
purchasers  to  survey  the  tract  into  ranges,  townships,  and 
sections,  at  their  own  expense,  a  suitable  number  of  sur- 
veyors were  employed,  by  Judge  Symmes,  to  accomplish 
that  work ;  but,  unfortunately,  a  plan  was  adopted,  better 
calculated  for  economy,  than  for  accuracy.     At  the  com- 
mencement of  the  survey,  the  principal  surveyor  was  di- 
rected, to  run  a  line  east  and  west,  from  one  Miami  river 
to  the  other,  sufficiently  north  to  avoid  the  bends  of  the 
Ohio,  for  a  base  line,  on  which  he  was  directed  to  plant 
a  stake  at  the  termination  of  each  mile.     The  assistant 
surveyors  were  then  instructed  to  run  meridian  lines  by  the 
compass,  from  each  of  those  stakes,  and  to  plant  a  stake  at 
the  termination  of  each  mile,  for  a  section  corner.     The 
purchasers  were  then  left  to  complete  the  survey,  by  run- 
ning east  and  west  lines,  at  their  own  expense,  to  connect 
those  corners.     By  that  defective  plan  of  survey,  scarcely 
two  sections  could  be  found  in  the  Purchase,  of  the  same 
shape,  or  of  equal  contents:  some  were  too  wide,  others 
too  narrow,  and  it  may  be  doubted  if  there  be  one  in  the 
whole  Purchase,  the  corresponding  corners  of  which,  either 
on  the  north,  or  the  south  side,  are  on  the  same  east  and 
west  line.     In  some  instances,  the  corner  on  one  meridian 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  419 

was  found  to  be  ten,  twenty,  and  sometimes  thirty  rods, 
either  north  or  south  of  the  corresponding  corner,  on  the 
other  meridian.  This  irregularity  was  embarrassing,  and 
was  very  much  complained  of.  Three  or  four  years  after- 
wards, when  many  of  the  sections  had  been  occupied  and 
improved,  the  Judge  adopted  a  plan  to  remedy  that  diffi- 
culty, which  rendered  confusion  more  confused.  He  order- 
ed the  meridian  line,  which  formed  the  east  boundary  of 
the  section,  on  which  Cincinnati  stands,  to  be  carefully  re- 
measured,  and  new  stakes  to  be  set  up,  at  the  termination 
of  each  mile.  That  line,  he  declared  to  be  the  standard, 
and  directed  purchasers  and  settlers  to  run  lines  east  and 
west,  from  the  new  stakes,  and  to  establish  their  corners  at 
the  points  of  intersection  on  the  meridians.  That  plan, 
had  it  been  persisted  in,  would  have  changed  every  origi- 
nal corner  in  the  Purchase.  Some  of  the  purchasers  pur- 
sued the  directions  of  the  Judge,  and  regulated  their  pos- 
sessions by  the  new  corners,  established  as  above.  It  was 
soon  found,  experimentally,  that  the  remedy  was  worse 
than  the  disease ;  but  fortunately  it  was  not  long  before  the 
difficulty  was  settled  by  a  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  State,  confirming  the  old  corners,  on  the  ground,  that 
the  original  survey  had  been  made  under  the  authority  of 
an  act  of  Congress,  and  accepted  at  the  Treasury  Depart- 
ment, and  was  therefore  final  and  obligatory,  and  could 
not  be  altered  by  either  party. 

About  the  same  time,  a  similar  difficulty  arose  in  regard 
to  the  boundaries  of  the  Military  Range,  which  had  been 
conveyed  to  General  Dayton,  for  the  purposes  before  men- 
tioned.*    As  the  surveyors  of  Judge  Symmes  had  not  divi- 

*  Judge  Symmes  instructed  his  surveyors  in  running  the  meridians  from 
his  base  line,  which  was  three  miles  north  of  the  southern  boundary  of  the 
second  Fractional  Range.,  to  place  stakes  for  the  corners  of  sections,  for  the 
distance  of  three  Ranges,  or  eighteen  miles,  from  the  south  boundary  of  the 
second  Fractional  Range,  which  would  bring  them  to  the  south  boundary  of 
the  third  entire  Range;  and  from  thence  to  measure  six  miles,  the  width  of 


420  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ded  that  range  into  sections,  by  planting  stakes,  as  they  did 
in  other  places,  Mr.  Ludlow  was  appointed  by  Mr.  Dayton, 
to  make  the  survey,  and  establish  the  section  corners.  The 
lines  run  by  him,  as  boundaries  of  the  Range,  interfered,  in 
some  cases,  with  the  corners  previously  made,  but  having 
been  run  by  competent  authority,  they  were  confirmed  by 
the  Supreme  Court,  as  far  as  they  did  not  conflict  with  the 
survey  previously  made  under  the  authority  of  Mr.  Symmes, 
by  virtue  of  the  act  of  Congress. 

As  some  of  the  sections  were  too  large,  and  others  too 
small,  and  as  it  had  been  ascertained,  that  the  entire  sur- 
vey contained  the  quantity  of  land  required  to  complete  all 
the  sections,  Mr.  Symmes,  to  do  justice  among  the  pur- 
chasers and  to  himself,  established  a  general  rule,  that  in 
all  cases  of  a  deficiency,  he  would  pay  to  the  purchasers,  at 
the  rate  of  four  dollars  per  acre,  for  such  deficiency,  and 
that,  where  there  was  a  surplus,  the  purchaser  should  pay 
for  it,  at  the  same  rate.  Although  his  right  to  establish 
this  rule  was  not  admitted,  yet  it  seemed  to  be  equitable, 
and  was  not  complained  of;  probably,  a  lawyer  would 
have  taken  the  contract  price,  in  each  case,  to  ascertain 
the  sum  to  be  refunded,  or  received,  as  the  case  might  be, 

Although  the  contest  about  the  old  and  new  corners,  has 
been  judicially  settled,  yet  they  have  occasionally  given 
rise  to  litigation,  since  that  time.  In  some  cases  it  has 
been  a  matter  of  dispute,  which  of  the  two  existing  corners 
was  the  old  original  corner,  and  which  the  new  one.  In 
other  cases,  agreements  had  been  made  by  the  parties  to 
establish  corners  for  themselves,  which  produced  litigation. 
But  those  causes  of  dispute  seem  to  be  exhausted. 

About  the  year  1810,  the  mansion-house  of  Judge  Symmes, 
at  North  Bend,  one  of  the  most  spacious  and  commodious 
in  the  State,  was  destroyed  by  an  incendiary.     The  Judge 


the  Military  Range,  without  setting  stakes.  At  the  end  of  the  sixth  mile,  on 
each  meridian,  they  were  directed  to  make  corners,  for  the  commencement  of 
the  fourth  entire  Range. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  421 

being  absent  at  the  time,  most  of  the  papers,  maps,  and 
books  of  entry,  relating  to  the  survey  and  sale  of  lands,  in 
the  purchase,  were  consumed,  and  it  was  apprehended, 
that  very  great  difficulty  and  embarrassment  would  be  pro- 
duced by  the  loss.  It  was  ascertained,  however,  that  the 
principal  book,  containing  the  original  locations,  was  in 
Cincinnati,  where  it  had  been  taken,  a  short  time  before,  to 
be  used  as  evidence  in  court. 

The  original  field  notes  of  the  survey  were  destroyed; 
but,  fortunately,  Judge  Henderson  and  some  other  sur- 
veyors had  taken  copies  with  great  care  and  accuracy,  for 
their  own  convenience.  Under  the  sanction  of  an  act  of  the 
Legislature,  those  copies  were  procured,  and  their  accuracy 
proved.  They  were  then  recorded,  and  by  the  authority  of 
the  act,  were  made  legal  evidence,  in  all  cases  to  which 
they  applied.  By  these  means  the  apprehended  mischief 
was  in  a  great  measure  prevented. 

Some  difficulty,  however,  was  experienced  by  the  property 
holders  in  Cincinnati,  owing  to  the  plan  adopted  by  the 
proprietors  of  the  town,  when  it  was  first  laid  out.  For  their 
own  convenience,  they  agreed  to  leave  the  legal  title  to  the 
town  section  and  fraction,  in  Mr.  Symmes,  who  undertook 
to  make  deeds  to  the  purchasers  of  lots,  on  the  presenta- 
tion of  certificates,  signed  by  any  two  of  the  proprietors. 
Those  certificates,  which  were  indispensably  necessary  to 
give  validity  to  the  deeds  executed  by  the  trustee,  were  left 
in  his  hands,  and  were  consumed  with  his  house.  It  was 
understood,  that  in  some  cases,  certificates  had  been  irregu- 
larly and  fraudulently  obtained;  and  also,  that  deeds  had 
been  made  to  assignees,  on  assignments  alledged  to  be 
fraudulent. 

In  some  of  these  cases  allegations  of  that  nature  were 
made,  by  the  original  holders,  who  denied  the  assignments 
to  be  genuine,  alledging,  that  if  they  existed,  they  were 
forgeries.  It  also  became  impossible  to  ascertain  whether 
all  the  deeds,  given  for  lots  in  the  town,  had  been  author- 


422  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ised  by  the  proprietors ;  but,  whatever  the  facts  might  have 
been,  in  reference  to  those  matters,  the  loss  of  the  certifi- 
cates precluded  all  investigation,  and  operated  as  a  quietus 
to  the  claimants  in  possession. 

Soon  after  the  conflagration,  suspicion  rested  on  a  man 
residing  near  the  Bend,  by  the  name  of  Hart,  who  was 
known  to  be  a  violent  enemy  of  Mr.  Symmes.  He  was 
arrested,  indicted,  and  put  on  his  trial;  and  although  the 
evidence  in  the  case  produced  conviction  of  his  guilt,  on  the 
minds  of  nine-tenths  of  the  crowd  of  by-standers,  who  heard 
it,  he  was  acquitted  by  the  jury. 

The  contract,  executed  by  the  agents  of  Judge  Symmes, 
in  October,  1788,  required  the  payment  of  the  purchase 
money  to  be  completed,  within  three  years,  after  the  boun- 
dary lines  of  the  entire  tract  had  been  surveyed,  and  plainly 
marked  by  the  geographer  of  the  United  States,  or  other 
person  appointed  for  that  purpose.  That  survey  must  have 
been  made  in  the  fall  of  1788,  or  early  in  the  spring  of 
1789.  In  either  case,  the  last  instalment  must  have  been 
due  early  in  1792.  At  that  time,  only  the  first,  and  part 
of  the  second,  had  been  paid;  and  the  contract,  of  course, 
was  liable  to  forfeiture. 

In  addition  to  this,  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  Purchase 
commenced  on  the  Ohio  river,  at  a  point,  twenty  miles 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Miami,  which  was  within  the 
limits  of  Cincinnati,  and  ran  from  thence  north,  parallel 
with  the  general  course  of  the  Big  Miami,  for  quantity. 
[See  Appendix,  C]  Mr.  Symmes  had,  however,  sold  the 
principal  part  of  the  land  between  that  line  and  the  Little 
Miami.  In  order  to  obtain  relief  from  those  embarrassing 
difficulties,  he  petitioned  Congress,  in  the  spring  of  1792,  to 
alter  his  contract,  in  such  manner,  that  it  should  extend 
from  one  Miami  to  the  other,  and  be  bounded  on  the  south 
by  the  Ohio,  on  the  east  and  west,  by  the  Miami  rivers, 
and  on  the  north,  by  a  parallel  of  latitude,  so  run  as  to 
include  the  quantity. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  423 

The  prayer  of  that  petition  was  granted,  and  a  law  was 
passed  authorising  the  alteration  to  be  made,  by  which  a 
large  number  of  meritorious  purchasers  were  secured  in 
the  quiet  possession  of  their  lands  and  improvements. 
The  law,  however,  made  a  reservation  of  fifteen  acres, 
contiguous  to  Fort  Washington,  and  extending  to  the  Ohio 
river,  for  the  accommodation  of  the  garrison.* 

That  object  being  secured,  Mr.  Symmes  presented  an- 
other petition  praying  for  the  passage  of  a  law,  authorising 
the  President  of  the  United  States  to  grant  him  a  patent 
for  as  much  of  the  land,  contained  in  his  contract,  as  he 
might  then  be  able  to  pay  for.  That  application  was  also 
granted,  and  a  law  to  that  effect  was  passed  on  the  5th  of 
May. 

In  1794,  the  Judge  repaired  to  Philadelphia,  and,  on  a 
settlement  with  the  Treasury  Department,  it  was  ascer- 
tained that  he  had  paid  for  two  hundred  and  forty-eight 
thousand  five  hundred  and  forty  acres  of  land,  for  which 
he  obtained  a  patent  in  September  1794.  But  as  the  same 
law  of  1792,  contained  a  provision  authorising  the  Presi- 
dent to  grant  a  College  township  for  the  use  of  the  Miami 
Purchase,  although  the  right  to  such  a  grant  had  been  lost, 

*  By  the  act  of  Congress,  of  April,  1792,  defining  the  boundaries  of  the 
grant  to  Judge  Symmes,  and  his  associates,  the  President  was  authorised  to 
reserve  to  the  United  States,  such  lands,  at  and  near  Fort  Washington,  as  he 
might  think  necessary  for  the  accommodation  of  the  garrison,  at  that  fort. 

In  the  patent,  made  in  pursuance  of  the  act  of  May,  1792,  the  President 
reserved  a  tract  of  fifteen  acres,  including  Fort  Washington,  for  the  accommo- 
dation of  its  garrison.  He  also  reserved  a  tract  of  land,  at  or  near  the  mouth 
of  the  Big  Miami,  equal  to  one  mile  square,  to  be  located  as  should  thereafter 
be  directed.  This  last  reservation  was  made  on  a  proviso,  that  Congress  pass- 
ed a  law  approving  of  it,  within  two  years;  in  which  case  the  reservation  of 
fifteen  acres  at  Fort  Washington,  was  to  be  relinquished  to  Mr.  Symmes,  and 
his  associates.  But  after  mature  deliberation,  it  was  determined  to  retain  the 
fifteen  acres,  as  most  useful  to  the  government.  In  consequence  of  which, 
the  law  mentioned  in  the  patent,  was  not  passed,  and  the  tract  of  a  mile 
square,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Miami,  reverted  to  Mr.  Symmes  and  his 
associates. 


424  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

in  consequence  of  reducing  the  purchase,  from  two  millions 
of  acres,  to  one  million,  by  the  contract  of  1788 :  and  as 
that  township,  together  with  the  reserved  sections,  were 
included  in  the  same  patent;  the  boundaries  described  in 
it  contained  three  hundred  and  eleven  thousand  six  hun- 
dred and  eighty- two  acres. 

The  draft  of  the  patent,  prepared  by  General  Hamilton, 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  was  objected  to  by  Mr.  Symmes, 
because  it  did  not  convey  the  land  to  him  alone,  but  to 
him  and  his  associates.  The  Secretary  refused  to  alter  it, 
and  an  appeal  was  made  to  the  President.  On  examina- 
tion, he  found  that  the  patent  was  in  strict  conformity  with 
the  contract,  and  the  act  of  Congress,  on  which  it  was 
founded.  He  therefore  refused  to  interfere,  and  eventually 
the  patent  was  accepted,  as  it  had  been  prepared  by  Gen- 
eral Hamilton.  This  difficulty  being  over,  Mr.  Symmes 
returned  to  the  Miami,  and  commenced  the  issuing  of 
deeds.  Prior  to  that  period  his  vendees  held  no  other  evi- 
dence of  right  than  the  original  warrants  received  at  the 
time  of  purchase. 

In  the  estimation  of  Congress  those  transactions  termi- 
nated the  contract  of  1788,  though  it  was  neither  formally 
released  nor  canceled.  That  omission  left  it  prima  facie  in 
full  force;  and  induced  Mr.  Symmes  to  believe,  that  he 
would  be  entitled  to  a  farther  fulfilment  of  it,  on  his 
making  future  payments. 

The  northern  boundary  of  the  patent  extended  only  a 
few  miles  above  the  Military  Range ;  in  consequence  of 
which,  a  large  quantity  of  land,  previously  sold  by  Mr. 
Symmes,  was  not  included  in  it,  and  not  only  so,  but  on 
his  return  from  Philadelphia,  he  continued  to  sell,  beyond 
the  limits  of  his  patent,  as  he  had  done  before,  confidently 
expecting  to  obtain  a  further  grant,  on  making  further  pay- 
ments to  government.  In  the  mean  time  doubts  were 
entertained  as  to  the  validity  of  his  right  to  make  those 
sales.     Rumors  were  afloat  which  rendered  the  purchasers 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  425 

uneasy;  they  began  to  fear  for  their  safety,  and  insisted 
that  Mr.  Symmes  should  take  measures  for  their  security. 
They  had  paid  large  sums  of  money,  in  the  purchase 
and  improvement  of  their  farms,  and  were  apprehensive 
that  it  might  all  be  lost.  Some  of  them  proposed  to  make 
a  direct  application  to  Congress  for  relief,  but  Mr.  Symmes 
dissuaded  them  from  that  measure,  lest  it  might  defeat  the 
claim  he  was  about  to  set  up,  for  the  complete  fulfilment 
of  his  contract.  Finding  that  he  could  not  pacify  them 
any  longer,  he  concluded  to  go  to  Philadelphia;  and  in  the 
fall  of  1796,  after  the  adjournment  of  the  General  Court, 
at  Marietta,  he  proceeded  on  his  journey,  accompanied  by 
the  writer  of  this  narrative,  who  went  on  a  visit  to  his 
friends,  in  Newark  and  New  York,  and  who  had  an  inter- 
est in  the  success  of  the  application.* 


*  As  they  did  not  arrive  at  Philadelphia  until  a  few  days  before  the  first 
Monday  in  December,  when  President  Washington  was  to  deliver  his  last  offi- 
cial address  to  the  two  Houses  of  Congress,  Mr.  Burnet,  who  had  been  pre- 
sent at  his  first  inauguration,  in  New  York,  in  1789,  determined  to  remain  in 
the  city  for  the  purpose  of  being  present  on  the  interesting  occasion,  which 
was  then  at  hand.  Being  personally  acquainted  with  several  members  of  Con- 
gress, he  found  no  difficulty  in  being  introduced  into  the  hall  in  company 
with  them,  and  of  course  in  time  to  obtain  a  convenient  position  in  front  of 
the  Speaker's  chair. 

Soon  after  the  members  of  Congress  were  seated,  the  President,  accompa- 
nied by  the  Cabinet  and  his  Private  Secretary,  entered  the  hall,  preceded  by  a 
Committee  of  Congress,  by  whom  he  was  conducted  to  the  Speaker's  chair. 
He  was  dressed  in  a  suit  of  rich  black  velvet,  with  black  silk  stockings  and 
large  shoe-buckles  and  knee-buckles.  According  to  the  fashion  of  the  day,  his 
hair  was  combed  back  from  his  forehead  —  powdered  —  curled  at  his  temples, 
and  gathered  behind  in  a  square  black  silk  bag  suspended  between  his  shoul- 
ders. A  neat  dress-sword  hung  at  his  left  side.  The  moment  he  took  his  seat 
every  eye  in  the  hall  was  directed  to,  and  apparently  riveted  on  him  ;  and,  al- 
though the  house  was  crowded  to  suffocation,  it  was  as  still  as  the  grave. 
Every  individual  of  the  multitude  was  manifestly  afraid  to  move,  lest  he  might 
disturb  the  solemnity  of  the  scene. 

After  sitting  eight  or  ten  minutes,  the  President  arose,  and  bowing  first  to 
the  members  of  Congress  who  were  immediately  before  him,  and  then  to  the 
surrounding  multitude,  proceeded  to  deliver  his  address,  which  was  written 
and  open  before  him,  though  he  scarcely  found  it  necessary  to  look  at  it,  at 


m 

426  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

The  Judge  spent  the  winter  and  spring  in  fruitless  efforts 
to  induce  the  government  to  receive  his  money,  and  make 
him  a  further  grant.  They,  however,  assumed  the  ground, 
that  the  arrangement  under  the  law  of  1792,  was  a  final 
adjustment  of  all  his  claims  —  that  the  whole  contract  had 
been  forfeited  for  non-payment,  anterior  to  the  law  of 
1792,  and  might,  at  that  time,  have  been  so  declared.  They 
alledged  that  a  formal  release,  under  those  circumstances, 
was  not  necessary,  as  the  forfeiture  of  the  contract  was 
apparent  on  the  face  of  it.  Finding  that  there  was  not 
the  most  distant  hope  of  success,  he  abandoned  his  claim, 
in  despair;  leaving  the  purchasers,  whose  lands  were  not 
covered  by  the  patent,  to  seek  the  best  remedy  in  their 
power. 

The  situation  of  those  disappointed  men,  was  distressing. 
Many  of  them  had  paid  for  their  land  in  full,  and  all  them 
in  part.  They  had  also  expended  considerable  sums  of 
money,  and  some  years  of  labor  in  clearing  and  improving 
them.  Thus  situated,  they  found  themselves  completely  at 
the  mercy  of  the  government;  liable  to  be  dispossessed  at 
any  moment.  Memorials  were  presented  to  Congress,  re- 
presenting their  grievances,  and  praying  for  relief;  and  in 
1799,  an  act  was  passed  in  their  favor,  which  secured  to  them 
and  to  all  other  persons,  who  had  made  written  contracts 
with  John  C.  Symmes,  prior  to  the  1st  of  April,  1799,  and 

any  time  during  the  delivery.  He  spoke  with  great  deliberation  and  with  con- 
siderable emphasis.  The  intonation  of  his  voice  was  solemn,  and  all  his  move- 
ments and  gestures  were  dignified,  but  easy  and  graceful.  The  expression  of 
his  countenance,  together  with  his  manner  and  general  deportment,  produced 
on  the  feelings  of  the  audience  the  same  deep,  indescribable  effect  that  had 
been  so  often  noticed,  and  spoken  of  on  former  occasions. 

After  the  address  was  closed,  the  multitude,  evidently  unwilling  to  retire, 
remained  in  their  places  gazing  on  the  object  of  their  veneration  and  love;  and 
it  was  with  much  difficulty  that  a  passago  could  be  made  sufficient  to  enable 
the  President  and  his  suite  to  reach  their  carriages;  and  after  that  object  was 
accomplished,  the  crowd  in  the  street  was  so  dense  and  extended  to  such  a 
distance  that  it  was  some  hours  before  they  were  enabled  to  make  their  way 
through  them. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  427 

whose  lands  were  not  comprehended  in  his  patent,  a  prefer- 
ence over  all  other  purchasers,  at  two  dollars  per  acre. 

In  1801,  the  right  of  pre-emption  was  extended  to  all  per- 
sons, who  had  purchased  prior  to  the  1st  of  January,  1800  ; 
and  afterwards  Congress  continued  to  indulge  them,  from 
year  to  year;  till  they  were  all  enabled  to  complete  their 
payments,  and  secure  their  titles. 

Without  expressing  any  opinion,  on  the  merits  of  Mr. 
Symmes'  claim  under  his  contract  of  1788,  there  is  no  doubt 
of  the  fact,  that  he  candidly,  and  honestly  believed,  he  was 
entitled  to  its  fulfilment,  and  had  a  right  to  continue  his 
sales,  as  he  had  done :  and  judging  from  appearances,  he 
never  despaired  of  ultimate  success;  till  he  was  finally  re- 
pulsed, in  the  winter  of  1796-7. 

Prior  to  that  time,  in  addition  to  the  sales  before  referred 
to,  he  had  granted  to  individuals  and  companies,  pre-emp- 
tion rights  to  large  tracts ;  in  consideration  of  their  assum- 
ing to  pay  the  original  contract  price,  to  the  government. 
The  grantees  of  these  pre-emptions,  sold  out  at  an  advance 
in  small  tracts  to  others;  who  also  engaged  to  pay  the  Go- 
vernment price,  assumed  by  their  vendors,  whenever  called 
for.  In  this  way,  a  large  portion  of  the  tract  of  a  million 
of  acres,  contracted  for  by  Mr.  Symmes,  in  1788,  had  passed 
from  him  and  was  claimed  by  others  ;  many  of  whom  were 
in  possession,  residing  on,  and  improving  the  land.  Several 
towns  had  been  laid  out  and  settled — mills  had  been  built, 
and  orchards  planted,  and  for  miles  north  of  the  patent  line, 
the  country  was  as  thickly  settled,  and  as  well  improved,  as 
it  was  generally  within  the  patent. 

From  this  view  of  the  case,  the  vast  importance  of  those 
pre-emption  laws  may  be  seen.  By  their  operation,  some 
hundreds  of  families  were  saved  from  ruin,  and  made  inde- 
pendent and  happy.  The  extension  of  the  right,  by  the 
law  of  1801,  to  all  who  had  purchased,  prior  to  the  1st  of 
January,  1800,  embraced  the  whole  of  those  unfortunate 
people,  and  enabled  every  one  of  them,  to  save  himself: 


428  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

and  the  extension  of  credit  which  Congress  gave,  from  time 
to  time,  by  subsequent  laws,  was  so  liberal,  that  some  of 
them  were  able  to  pay  their  instalments,  from  the  product 
of  their  farms. 

As  the  facts  relating  to  the  College  township,  mentioned 
in  the  original  proposition  of  Judge  Symmes  to  Congress, 
are  not  generally  known,  or  understood,  it  may  be  proper 
here  to  state  them  concisely. 

The  ordinance  under  which  the  early  sales  of  the  public 
domain  were  made,  did  not  authorise  a  grant  of  College 
lands,  to  purchasers  of  a  less  quantity  than  two  millions  of 
acres.  The  original  proposition  of  Mr.  Symmes,  being  for 
that  quantity,  would  have  entitled  him  to  the  benefit  of  the 
grant,  had  it  been  carried  into  effect.  It  was  therefore  sta- 
ted in  his  pamphlet,  containing  the  terms  of  sale  and  settle- 
ment, that  a  College  township  had  been  given,  and  located 
as  nearly  opposite  the  mouth  of  Licking  river,  as  an  entire 
township  could  be  found,  eligible  in  point  of  soil  and  situa- 
tion. The  selection  of  that  township,  was  made  in  good 
faith,  on  one  of  the  best  tracts  in  the  Purchase ;  and  was 
marked  on  his  map  as  the  College  township.  It  was  situate 
opposite  the  mouth  of  Licking,  and  was  reserved  from  sale 
for  the  purpose  intended,  until  it  was  ascertained,  that  the 
agents  appointed  to  close  the  contract  with  government, 
under  the  powers  given  in  the  letter  of  attorney,  had  relin- 
quished one  half  of  the  quantity,  proposed  to  be  purchased 
by  Mr.  Symmes ;  and  as  a  matter  of  course,  had  relinquished 
also  his  claim  to  a  College  township.  After  that  relinquish- 
ment, he  erased  the  entry  made  on  that  township,  on  his 
map,  as  he  had  a  right  to  do  ;  and  offered  it  for  sale.  As  it 
was  one  of  the  best  in  the  Purchase,  it  was  soon  entirely 
diposed  of.  The  matter  remained  in  that  situation,  til1 1792, 
when  the  Judge  applied  to  Congress,  as  is  stated  above,  to 
change  the  boundaries  of  his  purchase,  and  grant  him  a 
patent,  for  as  much  land  as  he  was  then  able  to  pay  for. 
When  the  bill  for  that  purpose  was  before  Congress,  Gen. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  429 

Dayton,  the  agent  of  Mr.  Symmes,  and  then  a  very  influen- 
tial member  of  the  House,  introduced  a  section,  authorising 
the  President  to  convey  to  Mr.  Symmes  and  his  associates, 
one  entire  township,  in  trust,  for  the  purpose  of  establishing 
an  Academy,  and  other  schools  of  learning,  conformably  to 
the  ordinance  of  Congress  of  2d  of  October,  1787;  to  be 
located,  with  the  approbation  of  the  Governor,  for  the  time 
being,  of  the  Territory  North-west  of  the  river  Ohio,  within 
the  term  of  five  years,  as  nearly  as  may  be,  in  the  centre  of 
the  tract  of  land,  granted  by  the  patent.  [See  Appendix,  D.] 

The  fact  was,  that  under  that  ordinance,  the  right  to  the 
township  had  been  lost,  by  relinquishing  half  the  quantity 
of  his  proposed  purchase  :  yet,  from  some  cause,  either  from 
a  want  of  correct  information,  or  a  disposition  to  be  gene- 
rous, the  provision  was  retained,  and  became  a  part  of  the 
law.  At  that  time,  there  was  not  an  entire  township  in 
the  Purchase,  undisposed  of;  portions  of  each  and  all  of 
them  had  been  sold  by  Mr.  Symmes,  after  his  right  to 
College  lands  had  been  lost,  and  before  the  law  of  1792 
had  renewed  the  claim.  It  wras  not,  therefore,  in  his  power 
to  make  the  appropriation  required. 

The  matter  remained  in  that  situation,  till  the  first  Ter- 
ritorial Legislature  was  elected  in  1799.  Mr.  Symmes, 
then  feeling  the  embarrassment  of  his  situation,  and  aware 
that  the  subject  would  be  taken  up  by  that  body,  made  a 
written  proposition  to  the  Governor  of  the  Territory,  offer- 
ing the  second  township  of  the  second  Fractional  Range, 
for  the  purposes  of  a  College.  The  Governor,  on  examina- 
tion, found  that  Mr.  Symmes  had  sold  an  undivided  moiety 
of  that  township,  for  a  valuable  consideration,  in  1788,  four 
years  before  the  right  to  a  College  township  existed;  that 
the  purchaser  had  filed  a  bill,  in  the  Circuit  Court  of  the 
United  States,  for  the  district  of  Pennsylvania,  to  obtain 
a  specific  performance  of  his  contract :  and  that  the  Judge 
had  also  sold  small  portions  of  the  same  township  to  other 
persons,  who  then  held  written  contracts  for  the  same  in 


430  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

the  form  of  deeds.     As  a  matter  of  course,  the  township 
was  rejected  by  the  Governor.     [See  Appendix  E,  1,  2,  3.] 

Soon  after  that  occurrence,  the  subject  was  brought  be- 
fore the  Territorial  Legislature,  at  the  instance  of  Mr. 
Symmes,  who  repeated  the  offer  to  them.  They  also  re- 
fused to  receive  it,  for  the  same  reasons  which  had  been 
assigned  by  the  Governor,  as  appears  from  the  journal  of 
that  body.  A  similar  refusal,  for  the  same  reasons,  was 
subsequently  made  by  the  State  Legislature,  to  whom  it 
was  again  offered  by  the  Judge.  Not  satisfied  with  these 
repeated  refusals,  in  1802-3,  he  offered  the  same  township 
to  Congress  for  the  same  purpose.  His  proposition  was 
referred  to  a  committee  of  that  body,  who,  after  hearing 
his  own  ex  parte  statement  of  the  facts,  relating  to  the  town- 
ship, were  fully  satisfied,  that  it  could  not  be  held,  for  the 
purpose  for  which  it  was  offered ;  and  therefore  they  also 
refused  to  receive  it. 

It  was  affirmed  in  the  written  communication  of  Judge 
Symmes,  to  Congress,  very  correctly,  that  the  Miami  Pur- 
chase did  not  obtain  a  right  to  College  lands,  till  the  law 
of  1792  was  passed;  that  prior  to  that  time,  he  had  sold 
large  portions  of  every  township  in  his  Purchase,  as  he  had 
a  right  to  do ;  that  the  township  he  then  offered,  had  not 
been  reserved  for  a  College,  but  to  be  sold  and  disposed  of  for  his 
own  personal  benefit;  and  that  he  had  sold  large  portions  of  it  as 
early  as  1788,  but  that  those  sales,  in  his  opinion,  were  void. 
[See  Appendix,  F,  G.] 

Some  persons  had  the  charity  to  believe,  that  when  he 
first  proposed  that  township,  for  the  use  of  a  College,  it 
was  his  intention  to  purchase  out  the  claimants,  which  he 
probably  might  have  done,  at  the  time  the  law  passed, 
making  the  grant,  on  fair  and  reasonable  terms;  but  he 
omitted  to  do  so,  till  that  arrangement  became  impractica- 
ble, and  until  his  embarrassments  rendered  it  impossible 
for  him  to  make  any  remuneration  to  Congress,  or  the  peo- 
ple of  the  Miami  Purchase. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  431 

The  delegates  representing  the  Territory  in  Congress, 
were  instructed  from  time  to  time,  to  exert  their  influence 
to  induce  the  government  to  grant  a  township,  in  lieu  of 
the  one  which  had  been  lost;  but  nothing  effectual  was 
accomplished,  until  the  establishment  of  a  State  govern- 
ment, in  1802-3,  when  a  law  was  passed  by  Congress, 
vesting  in  the  Legislature  of  Ohio  a  quantity  of  land,  equal 
to  one  entire  township,  to  be  located  under  their  direction, 
for  the  purpose  of  establishing  a  College  or  an  Academy, 
in  lieu  of  the  township  already  granted,  for  the  same  pur- 
pose, by  the  act  entitled  "An  act  authorising  the  grant 
and  conveyance  of  certain  lands  to  John  C.  Symmes  and 
his  associates." 

In  April,  1803,  the  Legislature  of  Ohio  passed  an  act, 
appointing  Jacob  White,  Jeremiah  Morrow,  and  William 
Ludlow,  Commissioners  to  locate  the  College  lands,  amount- 
ing to  thirty-six  sections;  by  virtue  of  which  they  selected 
and  located  them,  as  they  are  now  held  by  the  Miami 
University.  In  consequence  of  the  numerous  sales  that 
had  been  made  in  the  Miami  Purchase,  the  College  lands 
were,  from  necessity,  located  west  of  the  Big  Miami  river, 
without  the  limits  of  the  Miami  Purchase. 

In  February,  1809,  the  Legislature  passed  a  law,  con- 
taining the  following  provision,  to  wit :  "  There  shall  be  an 
University  established  and  instituted,  in  manner  hereafter 
to  be  directed,  within  that  part  of  the  country  known  by 
the  name  of  John  Cleves  Symmes'  Purchase ;  which  Uni- 
versity shall  be  designated  by  the  name  and  style  of  the 
Miami  University."  The  act  then  proceeded  to  describe 
the  powers  and  duties  of  the  corporation,  and  to  appoint 
trustees,  etc.;  it  then  made  a  formal  grant  of  all  the  land 
vested  in  them  by  Congress,  for  the  use  of  the  Miami  Pur- 
chase, to  the  corporation  created  by  that  act,  and  their  suc- 
cessors forever,  for  the  sole  use  and  benefit  of  the  said 
University. 

The    17th  section   appointed  Alexander  Campbell,  the 


432  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

Reverend  James  Killburn,  and  the  Reverend  Robert  Wil- 
son, Commissioners,  to  fix  on  the  place  for  the  permanent 
seat  of  the  University,  in  such  part  of  John  C.  Symmes* 
Purchase,  as  an  eligible  place  could  be  found,  paying  re- 
gard to  health,  etc. 

The  19th  section  directed  the  first  meeting  of  the  corpo- 
ration to  be  at  Lebanon,  in  the  county  of  Warren.  At  the 
time  appointed  for  the  meeting  of  the  Commissioners,  the 
Reverend  Doctor  Wilson  was  detained  at  home  by  sick- 
ness in  his  family.  The  other  Commissioners,  his  col- 
leagues, attended,  and  after  having  examined  all  the 
places  presented  for  their  consideration,  including  Cincin- 
nati, Dayton,  and  Lebanon,  they  selected  the  town  of 
Lebanon,  in  the  county  of  Warren,  as  the  seat  of  the 
University,  and  made  their  report  accordingly  to  the 
Legislature. 

It  was  then  generally  understood,  that  the  seat  of  the 
institution  was  unalterably  fixed,  although  the  citizens  of 
other  places,  who  had  failed  in  their  applications,  were 
greatly  disappointed.  But  at  the  next  session  of  the  Legis- 
lature, a  proposition  was  made  by  Mr.  Cooper,  of  Dayton, 
to  establish  the  University  on  the  College  lands,  without 
the  limits  of  Symmes'  Purchase.  This  proposition  was 
objected  to,  on  various  grounds.  It  was  contended,  that 
the  donation  was  originally  made  to  the  people  of  the 
Miami  Purchase,  for  their  exclusive  benefit — that  the 
patent  of  1792,  granted  the  township  for  the  sole  intent 
and  purpose  of  erecting  and  establishing,  within  that  Pur- 
chase, an  Academy,  etc.,  that  the  law,  subsequently  passed 
in  1803,  vested  the  land  in  the  Legislature,  for  the  purpose 
of  an  Academy,  in  lieu  of  the  township  already  granted 
for  the  same  purpose. 

It  was  further  contended,  that  by  the  law  of  1809,  the 
Legislature  had  established  a  University,  within  the  H?nits 
of  John  C.  Symmes'  Purchase,  and  had  granted  the  fee  of 
the  land,  to  the  Trustees  of  that  institution,  for  its  sole  and 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  433 

exclusive  benefit — that  they  had  thus  executed  their  trust, 
and  exhausted  their  power,  and  that  they  could  not  revoke 
that  grant,  or  apply  the  fund  to  another  institution,  estab- 
lished without  the  Miami  Purchase.  The  Legislature,  how- 
ever, thought  differently,  and  passed  an  act  establishing 
the  University  on  the  land,  without  the  limits  of  John  C. 
Symmes'  Purchase.  That  institution  is  now  in  a  very 
flourishing  state,  and  although  the  original  beneficiaries  of 
the  grant  have  been  wrongfully  deprived  of  their  rights, 
yet  it  is  now  too  late  to  Telieve  them,  without  great  tem- 
porary injury  to  the  cause  of  science,  and  on  that  account 
it  is  desirable  that  no  effort  be  made  to  disturb  the  institu- 
tion, or  to  check  its  advance. 
28 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

Ancient  artificial  structures  in  Cincinnati. — Articles  found  in  them. — Per- 
petuation of  vegetable  productions. — Alluvial  deposit  at  Cincinnati. — How 
produced. — Note. — Reflections  on  the  Mosaic  account  of  creation. — Prob- 
able change  in  the  course  of  the  Big  Miami. — How  produced. — Navigation 
of  the  Mississippi  river. — Intrigaies  with  the  Spanish  officers. — The  territory 
of  Mississippi  established. — Introduction  of  American  Courts. — Suits  at  law 
multiply. — Practice  profitable. 

The  mounds  and  other  artificial  structures,  found  through- 
out the  Western  country,  have  excited  so  much  attention,  and 
given  rise  to  so  many  speculations,  that  it  may  be  of  some 
interest  to  give  a  concise  account  of  those  which  were  stand- 
ing within  the  limits  of  Cincinnati,  in  1796. 

The  improvements  made  in  the  village,  at  that  early  pe- 
riod, were  trifling.  The  surface  of  the  ground  had  been 
scarcely  disturbed,  by  the  small  number  of  temporary  build- 
ings, which  had  been  constructed  for  immediate  use ;  and 
the  ancient  works  referred  to,  were  in  a  perfect  state  of 
preservation;  only  depressed  in  height,  by  the  natural 
causes,  which  had  been  operating  for  ages,  to  wash  and 
wear  them  down. 

Within  the  limits  of  the  village,  there  were  two  large 
circles,  one  on  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  town,  which 
extended  to  Eastern  Row,  a  two-pole  alley,  since  widened 
and  called  Broadway;  and  the  other  near  the  centre  of  the 
plat.  They  were  constructed  with  great  exactness,  and 
were  about  six  hundred  feet  in  diameter.  The  earth  which 
composed  them,  had  been  manifestly  brought  from  some 
distance,  or  taken  evenly  from  the  surrounding  surface,  and 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  435 

had  been  gradually  washed  down,  during  a  succession  of 
ages;  yet  the  apex  of  the  one  most  central,  was  twelve  or 
fifteen  feet  above  the  level  of  its  base,  which  had  been 
greatly  widened  by  abrasion.  They  were  on  the  upper 
level  of  the  town  plat,  and  did  not  approach  nearer  the 
brink  of  it  than  four  hundred  feet. 

Near  the  western  boundary  of  the  village,  there  stood  a 
conical  mound  of  great  beauty,  about  fifty  feet  high,  con- 
structed with  great  exactness,  and  standing  on  a  base  unu- 
sually small,  compared  with  its  height.  When  General 
Wayne's  army  was  encamped  at  Hobson's  Choice,*  he  had  a 
sentry-box  on  the  top  of  it,  which  gave  a  view  of  the  entire 
plain.  In  the  same  neighborhood,  three  smaller  mounds 
were  standing,  which  were  found  on  examination  to  contain 
human  bones,  as  is  the  case  in  regard  to  most  of  them. 
There  was  also  one  of  a  medium  size,  compared  with  the 
others,  standing  on  the  brow  of  the  hill,  about  midway  be- 
tween the  circles,  and  in  advance  of  them  about  three  hun- 
dred feet.  It  was  on  the  eastern  boundary  line  of  Main 
street,  and  as  that  street  was  from  time  to  time,  dug  down 
and  graded,  for  the  convenience  of  travelling,  the  mound 
was  gradually  precipitated  into  it,  and  has  been  entirely 
removed  many  years  ago. 

While  that  process  was  going  on,  many  articles  were 
found,  some  of  which  were  of  an  interesting  character,  and 
were  most  probably  deposited  in  it,  after  the  country  had 

*  On  the  arrival  of  General  Wayne,  at  Cincinnati,  with  the  troops  from 
Legionville,  late  in  1793,  he  ordered  the  Quartermaster,  with  two  or  three  of 
his  officers,  to  make  a  careful  examination  of  the  grounds  adjoining  the  town, 
and  select  the  most  eligible  spot  for  the  construction  of  an  encampment. 
After  a  careful  execution  of  the  order,  they  reported  that  there  was  no  situa- 
tion near  the  town,  on  which  the  army  could  be  conveniently  encamped;  and 
that  the  only  ground,  which  was  in  any  degree  calculated  for  the  purpose, 
was  on  the  river  bank,  between  the  village  and  Millcreek.  The  General  re- 
plied, "  If  that  be  so,  we  have  Hobson's  choice,  and  must  take  it."  From  that 
expression,  the  place  selected  was  immediately  called  Hobson's  Choice,  and  has 
been  known  by  that  name  ever  since. 


436  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

been  visited  by  Europeans.  Among  them  were  marine 
shells  and  pieces  of  hard  brown  earthenware.  A  small 
image  of  a  female,  supposed  to  be  the  Virgin  Mary,  holding 
an  infant  in  her  arms,  finely  wrought  in  ivory,  which  had 
been  somewhat  mutilated,  was  also  found.  A  small  com- 
plex instrument  of  iron,  much  corroded,  and  supposed 
by  some,  to  have  been  intended  to  ascertain  the  weight  of 
light  articles,  was  discovered.  The  skeleton  of  a  man  was 
also  found,  contained  in  what  might  be  called  a  coffin  of 
flat  stones,  so  placed,  as  to  protect  the  body  on  every  side, 
from  the  pressure  of  the  earth.  This  grave  was  only  a  few 
feet  below  the  upper  surface  of  the  barrow. 

In  the  year  1802,  a  well  was  dug  within  the  central  cir- 
cle above  described,  in  which  at  the  depth  of  ninety-three 
feet,  two  stumps  were  found,  one  about  a  foot,  and  the  other 
about  eighteen  inches  in  diameter,  concerning  which,  many 
exaggerated  statements  have  appeared  in  print,  at  different 
times,  professing  to  describe  their  appearance,  and  the  con- 
dition in  which  they  were  when  first  discovered.  One  wri- 
ter stated  that  they  had  evidently  been  cut  down  by  a  me- 
tallic instrument — that  the  marks  of  an  axe  were  visible, 
and  that  chips  were  found  near  them,  in  a  state  of  preser- 
vation. Another  said,  that  iron  rust  was  seen  on  them, 
and  a  third,  that  an  axe  was  found  near  by.  Neither  of 
these  accounts  was  true.  It  is  a  fact  that  the  stumps  were 
found  at  the  depth  stated ;  and  that  when  discovered,  they 
were  standing  in  the  position  in  which  they  grew.  Their 
roots  were  yet  sound,  and  extended  from  them,  horizontally 
and  regularly  in  every  direction.  Their  tops  had  decayed, 
and  mouldered  to  earth,  so  that  no  opinion  could  be  formed 
as  to  the  means  by  which  the  trunks  had  been  severed.  The 
surface  of  the  earth  over  the  place  where  they  were  f.mnd, 
was  ninety-three  feet  above  them,  and  one  hundred  and 
twelve  feet  above  the  present  low  water  mark  of  the  Ohio 
river.  They  could  not  have  been  brought  there  by  a  cur- 
rent of  water,  because  their  upright  position,  and  the  reg- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  437 

ular  horizontal  extension  of  their  roots,  in  all  directions, 
proved  that  they  must  have  grown  on  the  spot  where  they 
were  found. 

There  is  another  fact  connected  with  this  subject,  worthy 
of  notice.  Before  the  well  was  dug,  not  a  mulberry  tree 
had  been  seen  growing  on  the  premises,  though  they  were 
found  in  the  neighboring  forest,  yet  the  next  season,  they 
sprang  up  wherever  the  excavated  earth  had  been  spread, 
in  such  numbers  as  made  it  necessary  to  destroy  them, 
and  they  continued  thus  to  shoot  up  for  a  year  or  two; 
though  not  one  made  its  appearance  on  the  remote  parts  of 
the  lot,  to  which  the  excavated  earth  had  not  been  carried. 

This  fact  produced  a  belief  that  one  of  them  must  have 
been  the  stump  of  a  mulberry,  and  gave  rise  to  some 
speculation,  as  to  the  physical  cause  of  the  reproduction  of 
trees,  which  led  to  an  examination  of  the  Mosaic  account 
of  creation,  to  ascertain  what  light  it  might  cast  on  the 
subject.* 


*  When  the  reader  has  examined  the  chapter  referred  to,  for  the  purpose  of 
ascertaining  what  the  inspired  writer  has  stated,  in  regard  to  the  formation  of 
the  earth,  and  its  vegetable  productions,  and  the  provision  made  for  reprodu- 
cing them,  and  perpetuating  their  existence;  if  he  will  pause,  and  review  the 
residue  of  the  verses,  he  will  find  a  beauty  pervading  the  whole,  in  perfect 
keeping  with  the  sublimity  of  the  subject.  The  substance  of  the  first  man- 
date uttered  by  the  Deity,  at  the  beginning  of  creation,  clothed  in  the  most 
simple  language,  is  what  writers  of  taste  in  all  ages,  have  called  the  true  sub- 
lime. Longinus,  the  learned  critic  and  statesman,  of  Palmyra,  quoted  the 
passage  as  a  most  striking  specimen  of  that  style  of  writing. 

It  is  admitted  by  those  who  believe  in  the  verity  of  the  Scriptures,  that  the 
facts  recorded  throughout  the  chapter,  were  inspired:  and  a  lover  of  the  sub- 
lime, might  persuade  himself,  that  the  language  in  which  they  are  expressed 
was  also  inspired.  While  studying  this  chapter,  it  should  be  borne  in  mind, 
that  although  the  Egyptians  had  made  considerable  advances  in  the  science  of 
astronomy,  in  the  days  of  Moses,  who  was  instructed  iia  all  their  literature, 
yet,  compared  with  subsequent  discoveries,  that  science  was  in  its  infancy. 
The  most  cultivated  of  the  human  family,  knew  but  little  of  the  heavenly 
bodies,  or  of  the  influences  which  keep  them  in  their  places  and  regulate  their 
movements.  The  laws  of  gravity  and  attraction  were  unknown;  the  power 
which  those  laws  gave  to  the  sun,  over  the  solar  system,  they  did  not  under- 


438  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

The  inspired  historian  tells  us,  that  on  the  third  day, 
God  said,  "  Let  the  earth  bring  forth  grass,  the  herb  yield- 
ing seed,  and  the  fruit  tree  yielding  fruit,  after  his  kind, 
whose  seed  is  in  itself."     On  this   concise   statement  the 


stand,  nor  did  they  understand  the  influence,  which  the  heavenly  bodies  exert 
on  each  other. 

It  was  not  deemed  expedient,  to  inspire  Moses  with  a  knowledge  of  astron- 
omy, although  with  the  limited  skill  he  possessed,  on  that  subject,  it  was  not 
possible  to  record  the  facts,  as  a  master  in  the  science  might  have  done.  He 
has  therefore  given  them  in  the  concise,  simple,  but  beautiful  language  in 
which  we  find  them.  The  process  is  stated,  as  far  as  he  could  comprehend  it, 
but  he  does  not  attempt  to  explain,  or  describe  the  mutations,  which  matter 
underwent,  in  the  process  of  passing  from  chaos,  to  the  organized  state  in 
which  it  now  appears. 

It  is  very  manifest,  that  during  the  process,  the  particles  of  light  scattered 
through  chaos  were  collected — earth  and  water  were  separated — a  firmament 
was  produced — an  atmosphere  made — the  planets  brought  into  form  and  set  in 
motion;  and  anew  system  of  worlds,  planted  in  space;  yet  no  intelligible  ex- 
planation is  given  of  the  process,  by  which  these  results  were  brought  about. 
Why  was  it  so  ?  Simply  because  it  seemed  good  in  the  sight  of  the  Almighty, 
to  confine  his  revelation  to  the  naked  fact,  that,  by  his  own  power,  he  created 
and  organized  our  system,  by  progressive  movements,  in  the  space  of  six  days. 

The  chief  object  of  Deity,  in  making  the  revelation,  seems  to  have  been,  to 
give  publicity  to  the  great  truth,  that  he  alone  created  the  heavens  and  the 
earth,  and  formed  and  fashioned  them,  by  his  own  power,  after  the  counsel  of 
his  own  will.  This  being  proclaimed  and  known,  the  object  of  the  revelation 
was  accomplished.  Moses  was  neither  commanded,  nor  inspired,  to  instruct 
the  world  in  philosophy  or  astronomy.  The  object  of  his  revelation  was  of  a 
different  character.  It  was  to  convince  men  of  the  majesty  and  power  of  their 
Creator;  not  to  enlighten  them,  as  to  the  means  by  which  he  accomplishes  his 
purposes — it  was  to  reach  the  heart  rather  than  the  head,  and  to  hold  men  in 
their  allegiance  to  heaven,  by  the  influence  of  admiration,  as  well  as  of  fear. 

In  the  first  two  verses  of  the  chapter,  the  chaotic  mass  out  of  which  the 
solar  system  was  organized,  is  described  as  it  was,  when  the  work  of  organiza- 
tion commenced.  The  terms  used,  are  well  selected  to  represent  a  confused 
mixture  of  all  the  varieties  of  matter,  found  in  the  solar  system.  It  was  said 
to  be  without  form  and  void — it  was  called  a  deep,  and  is  spoken  of  as  waters 
covered  with  darkness,  terms  which  properly  apply  to  chaotic,  nebulou?,  un- 
organized matter.  This  matter,  occupying  the  entire  space,  through  which 
the  planets  revolve,  and  extending,  probably,  to  an  immense  distance  beyond 
the  orbit  of  the  most  remote  of  them,  was  the  material  of  which  the  solar  sys- 
tem was  composed. 

The  expressions  used  indicate,  that  the  matter  spoken  of  had  been  created 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  439 

question  arises,  how  far  docs  it  account  for  the  facts  men- 
tioned above  ?  It  may  be  presumed,  that  when  the  veget- 
able productions  of  the  earth  were  made,  the  Creator 
ordained  the  means,  or  the  law,  by  which  they  were  to  be 

anterior  to  the  commencement  of  the  work  of  creation,  described  as  having 
been  finished  in  six  days.  The  terms  employed  are  not  susceptible  of  any 
other  interpretation.  They  affirm  that  M  in  the  beginning,  God  created  the 
heaven  and  the  earth" — they  describe  the  condition  of  that  primitive  creation, 
before  and  at  the  time,  the  Spirit  moved  upon  it;  and,  as  that  movement  pre- 
ceded, in  point  of  time,  the  commencement  of  the  work  of  creation,  stated  in 
the  verses  following,  the  matter,  on  the  face  of  which  it  was  made,  must  also 
have  preceded  it. 

These  two  verses  seem  intended  to  show,  what  the  Creator  had  done  in  the 
beginning;  but  when  the  beginning  was,  we  are  not  informed.  It  might  have 
been  myriads  of  ages,  before  our  system  was  organized,  possibly  from  all  eter- 
nity. Be  this  as  it  may,  the  inspired  pen,  which  made  the  record,  has  written 
it  down  in  terms  not  to  be  mistaken;  that  the  matter  composing  this  system, 
was  created,  and  in  existence,  before  the  system  itself  was  arranged. 

Moses,  having  given  a  description  of  the  matter  created  in  the  beginning, 
proceeds  to  recite,  what  portion  of  the  work  of  creation  was  accomplished,  on 
each  of  the  six  consecutive  days.  On  the  first,  he  tells  us,  the  Spirit  of  God 
moved  on  the  face  of  the  waters;  and  the  command  was  given,  "  Let  there  be 
light."  That  command  was  obeyed.  Light  was  produced,  and  called  Day — 
darkness  was  separated  from  it,  and  was  called  Night.  The  inspired  writer 
then  informs  us,  that  the  evening  and  the  morning  were  the  first  day. 

The  conclusion  to  be  drawn  from  this  statement  is,  that  the  formation  of  the 
Sun  was  completed  during  the  first  day,  and  that  before  the  commencement 
of  its  organization,  the  particles  which  compose  it,  were  diffused  throughout 
the  entire  mass  of  matter,  from  which  it  was  formed.  On  this  supposition, 
the  command  of  the  Deity  might  have  been  literally  obeyed,  by  any  process, 
which  would  collect  the  particles  of  light  from  all  directions,  into  one  body  at 
the  centre  of  chaos;  nor  would  it  be  inconsistent  with  the  narrative,  if  that 
process  should  have  been  carried  on  gradually,  by  the  operation  of  laws,  im- 
pressed on  matter  at  its  creation,  for  the  very  purpose  of  producing  that  result. 
But  whether  this  hypothesis  be  sustained  or  not,  it  is  certain  that  the  Sun, 
the  source  of  light,  was  completed  by  some  process,  in  the  first  of  the  six 
periods  denominated  days. 

It  cannot  be  a  matter  of  great  moment,  what  the  duration  of  that  period 
was,  for  with  the  Deity,  "one  day  is  as  a  thousand  years,  and  a  thousand  years 
as  one  day."  The  command  might  have  been  instantly  obeyed;  the  particles 
which  compose  that  body,  might  have  moved,  at  once,  to  the  centre  of  chaos, 
now  the  centre  of  the  solar  system;  and  it  might  have  been  formed  in  a  mo- 
ment, and  might  instantly  have  thrown  out  its  light  upon  the  surrounding 


440  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

reproduced  and  perpetuated;  and  it  would  seem  that  those 
means  ought  to  be  found  in  this  extract,  though  it  may  be 
difficult  or  even  impossible  to  comprehend  them,  or  the 
manner  in  which  they  operate. 

darkness.  The  text  will  bear  that  construction,  and,  irrespective  of  knowledge 
derived  from  geological  research,  and  from  other  sources,  perhaps  no  expositor 
of  the  Bible  would  feel  disposed  to  give  it  any  other  interpretation;  but  yet  it 
is  difficult  to  find  a  reason,  why  it  may  not  receive  a  different  one,  with  equal 
propriety,  and  in  perfect  consistence  with  the  verity  and  fidelity  of  the  re- 
velation. 

In  the  Almighty  mind  there  is  no  division  of  time — no  present,  past  and 
to  come — it  is  one  unceasing  now — all  portions  of  duration  are  as  points,  whe- 
ther days  or  years,  or  thousands  of  years.  He  might  have  created  the  system 
in  a  moment — in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye — without  intermediate  agencies,  as 
well  as  to  have  done  it  in  six  days;  but  he  chose  not  to  do  so.  He  saw  proper 
to  make  it  a  progressive  work,  and  to  complete  it  in  different,  successive  pe- 
riods, the  duration  of  which  would  seem  to  be  a  matter  of  but  little  moment, 
while  the  truth  of  the  narrative  is  acknowledged  and  believed. 

The  purposes  of  the  revelation  are  equally  gained,  whether  the  days  spoken 
of  be  considered  as  periods  of  twenty-four  hours,  or  of  much  longer  duration. 
On  the  first  supposition,  there  is  a  difficulty  to  encounter.  The  evening  and 
the  morning  had  completed  the  first  and  the  second  day,  before  the  earth  was 
formed,  or  could  have  made  a  revolution  on  its  axis,  by  which  our  days  are 
known  and  measured.  Of  course,  three  of  those  periods  must  have  passed,  be- 
fore that  measurement  of  time  existed.  How,  then,  could  there  be  an  evening 
and  a  morning  constituting  a  day,  as  we  understand  that  term,  till  the  sun 
was  created,  and  the  earth  put  in  motion  in  its  orbit  and  around  its  axis? 

He  who  contends  for  the  literal  meaning  of  the  word  day,  used  in  this  chap- 
ter, and  insists,  that  it  must  mean  a  period  of  twenty-four  hours,  and  no  more, 
should  pause  and  reflect,  whether  it  does  not  arm  the  enemies  of  revelation 
with  a  weapon  not  easily  to  be  parried.  How  would  the  friends  of  the  Bible 
succeed  in  defending  it  against  the  attacks  of  infidelity,  if  they  were  to  main- 
tain the  rule  of  literal  interpretation  throughout?  Large  portions  of  it  are 
necessarily  admitted  to  be  figurative,  and  receive  all  their  application  and  force 
from  that  admission. 

What  would  be  the  interpretation  of  the  seventy  weeks  of  Daniel,  if  the  term 
week  were  to  be  taken  in  its  literal  meaning?  All  commentators  agree  that 
in  that  connection  it  means  a  much  longer  period  than  the  word  expresses, 
according  to  its  popular  acceptation.  Why,  then ,  should  the  same  rule  of  inter- 
pretation be  rejected,  in  the  present  case,  and  these  difficulties  be  encountered, 
when  they  may  be  so  easily  and  naturally  avoided?  If  this  license  can  be 
taken,  the  work  of  creation  may  have  been  completed,  in  the  order  recited  by 
Moses,  by  the  operation  of  laws  ordained  by  the  Almighty,  calculated  to  pro- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  441 

It  appears  to  be  a  reasonable  conjecture  that  each  variety 
of  tree  and  plant,  was  originally  endued  with  some  active 
principle  or  virtue,  peculiar  to  itself,  which,  when  commu- 
nicated to  the  earth,  and  exposed  to  the  action  of  heat,  air, 


duce  the  results  he  intended,  and  which  were  in  fact  produced,  in  ohedience  to 
his  will.  This  hypothesis  does  not  infringe  on  the  verity  of  the  Mosaic  account; 
and  most  certainly,  it  does  not  detract  from  the  infinite  power  of  the  Creator. 
It  rather  gives  a  more  exalted,  as  it  does  a  more  intellectual  idea,  of  his  majesty 
and  glory. 

There  is  something  sublime  in  the  contemplation  of  such  a  union  of  power 
and  wisdom,  as  must  be  brought  into  exercise  by  a  being,  who  ordains  laws, 
operating  silently  through  all  space,  producing  in  exact  accordance  with  his 
will,  and  in  the  precise  time  intended,  such  stupendous  results  as  we  see  dis- 
played in  our  planetary  system.  The  fact  that  those  laws  accomplished  the 
purpose  of  him  who  ordained  them,  by  slow  progressive  action,  so  as  to  con- 
summate the  intended  results  in  the  course  of  many  ages,  detracts  nothing 
from  the  power  and  wisdom  of  their  divine  author.  On  the  contrary,  it  rather 
exalts  and  magnifies  both. 

As  far  as  the  attributes  of  the  Divine  character  are  concerned,  the  produc- 
tion of  these  results,  by  the  influence  of  laws  operating  for  unknown  ages, 
and  formed  with  such  precision  as  to  produce  in  the  end  the  exact  result  pre- 
determined by  their  author,  must,  if  such  a  thing  be  possible,  excel  the  glory 
of  speaking  them  into  being  instantaneously. 

There  is  a  grandeur  in  the  conception  of  such  an  immense  mass  of  chaotic 
matter,  as  Moses  describes,  filling  the  vast  space  occupied  by  the  solar  system, 
first  created  out  of  nothing,  and  then  reduced  to  order  and  beauty  by  the  silent 
action  of  laws  devised  for  the  purpose. 

The  means  by  which  the  Creator  saw  proper  to  organize  the  heavenly  bodies 
— place  them  in  their  orbits,  and  perpetuate  their  movements,  were  of  his  own 
choosing.  All  that  is  here  contended  for  is,  that  his  attributes  are  equally  illus- 
trated in  the  work  of  creation,  whether  he  accomplished  it  instantaneously,  by 
the  power  of  his  word,  or  brought  it  about  in  process  of  time,  by  intermediate 
causes. 

When  the  command  was  given,  "Let  there  be  light,"  might  not  the  laws  of 
attraction  and  gravity,  or  some  other  law  ordained  by  the  Deity,  either  disco- 
vered by  philosophy  already,  or  yet  to  be  discovered,  have  begun  the  process  of 
obeying  the  mandate,  by  causing  the  particles  which  compose  the  sun  to  move 
from  all  parts  of  chaos  to  its  centre,  and  there  form  that  glorious  orb?  If  this 
had  been  the  process,  no  attribute  of  the  Creator  would  have  been  diminished 
by  the  duration  of  the  period  in  which  it  was  accomplished. 

The  discoveries  of  geological  research  favor  this  hypothesis.  The  examina- 
tion of  the  surface  and  interior  of  the  globe,  as  far  as  it  has  been  seen,  presents 
to  the  eye  remains  of  the  varieties  of  organized  matter,  noticed  by  the  sacred 


442  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

and  moisture,  operates  as  the  germinating  cause,  indicated 
by  the  phraseology  of  the  quotation;  and  that  this  agent, 
be  it  what  it  may,  can  exist  unimpaired  in  a  dormant  state, 
for  an  indefinite  period,  if  it  be  kept  from  the  direct  influ- 
ence of  the  sun  and  air. 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind,  that,  when  the  town  of  Cin- 
cinnati was  laid  out,  the  forest  presented  evidence  that  the 
surface  of  the  earth  had  not  undergone  any  material 
change,  for  many  centuries;  as  it  exhibited  the  remains 
of  trees,  which  had  matured,  fallen,  and  decayed,  by  the 
side  of  others  still  flourishing,  and  giving  evidence  that 
they  had  been  growing  hundreds  of  years.  The  stumps 
must,  therefore,  have  been  in  the  situation  in  which  they 
were  found,  to  wit,  ninety-three  feet  below  the  surface  of 
the  earth,  during  an  equal  period ;  and  yet  when  the  earth 
about  their  roots  was  raised,  and  scattered  over  the  surface 

historian,  affording  indications,  by  their  relative  position,  that  they  were  formed 
in  the  order  stated  by  him;  but  they  indicate  also,  that  the  period  occupied  in 
their  formation  must  have  exceeded,  very  much,  the  short  duration  of  a  day, 
or  a  revolution  of  the  earth  on  its  axis. 

At  the  close  of  the  fourth  day,  the  system  was  finished,  and  every  planet 
was  moving  harmoniously  in  its  orbit,  around  a  common  centre.  It  has 
been  admitted  by  divines  that  when  the  movement  of  these  bodies  had  com- 
menced, the  Deity  suspended  the  exercise  of  his  direct  power,  to  continue 
their  motion,  and  left  them  to  be  moved  and  guided  by  the  laws  to  which  he 
had  subjected  them.  If  this  be  admitted,  the  difficulty  seems  to  be  removed; 
for  it  will  not  be  said,  that  the  laws  which  preserve  and  regulate  the  move- 
ments of  the  whole  universe,  could  not  have  been  employed  to  organize  and 
put  in  motion  a  single  system  belonging  to  it.  There  is  nothing,  then, 
irreverent  or  unscriptural  in  the  suggestion,  that  when  the  Deity  created 
matter,  he  impressed  on  it  laws  calculated  to  bring  it  into  order  and  sys- 
tem, and  so  constituted  as  to  accomplish  their  purpose,  in  a  succession  of  ages. 

Our  limited  minds  are  not  able  to  comprehend  the  movements  of  the  Al- 
mighty. Though  we  are  told  of  his  attributes,  we  cannot  realize  them;  and 
although  the  creation  of  our  world,  and  the  system  of  which  it  is  a  nart,  has 
been  revealed  by  an  inspired  pen,  how  much  of  the  detail  can  we  understand? 
The  powers  of  the  narrator  were  too  feeble  to  apprehend,  or  explain  the  modus 
operandi  of  omnipotence,  in  the  stupendous  work  of  creation.  He  tells  us 
that  God  commanded,  and  it  was  done;  but  how,  or  in  what  manner,  the  man- 
date was  executed,  ho  was  unable  to  explain. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  443 

of  the  ground,  where  no  mulberry  tree  existed,  young  mul- 
berries sprang  up  in  great  numbers. 

This  fact  seems  to  prove  that  the  earth,  which  had  been 
taken  from  the  well,  and  spread  over  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  contained  the  germinating  principle  which  caused 
the  young  mulberries  to  grow;  and  may  it  not  be  inferred, 
from  this  case,  that  the  earth  about  the  roots  of  every  tree, 
becomes  impregnated  in  the  same  way,  and  if  suddenly 
covered,  so  as  to  exclude  the  action  of  light  and  heat,  may 
retain  its  reproducing  powrer  for  centuries ;  and  when  after- 
wards, uncovered  and  brought  to  the  surface  of  the  ground, 
may  produce  the  same  kind  of  tree  which  formerly  over- 
shadowed and  communicated  to  it,  its  power?  It  is  not 
intended  here  to  assert,  that  this  hypothesis  accounts  for 
the  facts  stated,  but  merely  to  say  that  it  may  do  so,  with- 
out conflicting  with  reason,  or  the  scriptural  record  of  the 
creation. 

About  the  time  referred  to,  Mr.  Daniel  Symmes,  when 
digging  a  well  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  town,  found  a  log 
of  wood,  in  a  sound  condition,  at  the  depth  of  twenty-four 
feet  below  the  surface.  This  was  also  on  the  upper  level, 
but  in  the  vicinity  of  Deer  creek,  where  the  surface  of  the 
ground  is  much  lower  than  it  is  farther  west,  being  only  at 
that  point  eighty-one  feet  above  low  water  mark.  Similar 
discoveries  have  been  made  in  almost  every  part  of  the 
town  plat;  and  in  so  many  instances  as  to  establish  the 
fact,  most  conclusively,  that  the  site  of  Cincinnati  is  allu- 
vial, and  that  the  surface  of  the  earth  on  which  it  stands, 
was  once  very  far  below  its  present  elevation. 

The  certainty  of  this  assumption  presents  another  very  in- 
teresting question,  which  has  not  yet  received  a  satisfac- 
tory answer.  From  whence,  and  by  what  agency,  was  this 
alluvium  brought  to  the  place  it  now  occupies?  Did  it 
come  from  the  immediate  neighborhood,  or  from  a  distance? 
To  aid  in  the  solution  of  this  question,  it  may  be  stated, 
that  the  place  where  it  is  now  deposited,  is  washed  on  the 


444  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

south  by  the  Ohio  river;  and  that  on  the  east,  north,  and 
west,  except  at  the  gap  through  which  Mill  creek  passes,  it 
is  enclosed  by  very  high  hills,  of  limestone  formation,  so 
connected  with  the  adjoining  lands  as  to  show  that  they 
have  not  undergone  any  great,  sudden  alteration,  since  the 
Deluge ;  when  they  were  probably  formed  by  the  breaking 
up  of  the  fountains  of  the  great  deep.  Their  present  form 
and  elevation  is  such  as  to  indicate,  that  they  did  not  fur- 
nish the  material  with  which  the  valley  has  been  filled  up; 
and  it  is  still  more  evident  that  the  deposite  was  not  made 
by  the  action  of  the  Ohio  river,  since  it  occupied  its  pres- 
ent bed. 

Judging  from  the  surface  of  the  surrounding  country,  the 
phenomenon  may  probably  be  accounted  for  more  ration- 
ally, by  assuming  that  the  Big  Miami,  which  now  connects 
itself  with  the  Ohio,  twenty  miles  below  Cincinnati,  once 
came  down  the  valley  through  which  Mill-creek  now 
passes,  and  that  the  deposit  in  question  was  made  by  the 
agency  of  that  stream,  either  in  the  course  of  many  ages, 
or  by  some  unusual,  powerful  cause,  producing  its  effect 
suddenly.  With  a  knowledge  of  the  ravages  caused  by 
the  elements,  within  the  last  two  years,  it  would  not  require 
a  very  great  stretch  of  imagination,  to  conceive  of  a  vio- 
lent convulsion,  accompanied  with  an  unusual  rise  of  water 
in  the  Big  Miami,  sufficiently  powerful  and  irresistible  to 
carry  with  it  the  material  which  filled  up  its  original  chan- 
nel, and  opened  for  itself  a  new  one,  through  which  it  dis- 
charges itself  into  the  Ohio  river,  and  that  the  deposit,  on 
which  Cincinnati  stands,  was  made  at  the  same  time. 

The  present  surface  of  the  Miami  country  presents  no 
objection  to  this  hypothesis;  but  rather  tends  to  strengthen, 
and  to  render  it  plausible,  if  not  probable.  Those  who  are 
acquainted  with  the  valley  of  Mill-creek,  know  that  it  is 
connected  with  the  Big  Miami  in  the  neighborhood  of  Ham- 
ilton, and  that  there  is  now  a  large  pond  near  that  place, 
and  about  twenty  miles  north  of  Cincinnati,  from  which,  in 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  445 

wet  seasons,  the  water  passes  through  Pleasant  run,  into  the 
Miami,  below  Hamilton,  and  by  Mill-creek,  into  the  Ohio, 
at  Cincinnati;  and  that  above  Pleasant  run,  east  of  the 
present  channel  of  the  Miami  river,  and  in  its  immediate 
vicinity,  there  was  a  beautiful  deep  bayou  of  some  extent, 
resembling  one  of  the  curves  of  the  river,  of  which  it  must 
once  have  been  a  part. 

Since  the  country  has  been  settled,  it  has  been  almost 
entirely  filled  up,  with  a  view  of  preventing  its  bad  effects 
on  the  health  of  the  neighborhood;  but  at  the  first  settle- 
ment of  the  vicinity,  as  the  pioneers  remember,  and  as  ap- 
pears from  the  field  notes  of  the  original  survey,  it  resem- 
bled the  river,  so  perfectly,  that  one  of  Judge  Symmes' 
surveyors,  Mr.  Dunlap,  on  striking  it  near  Fort  Hamilton, 
supposed  it  to  be  the  Miami,  terminated  his  line,  made  an 
offset  of  some  miles  to  the  east,  and  reported  accordingly. 

But  it  is  not  proposed  here  to  settle  the  grave  questions 
involved  in  this  narrative.  "  Non  nostrum* **tantas  componere 
lites." 

In  the  early  settlement  of  the  western  country,  serious 
difficulties  existed  before  and  after  the  adoption  of  the 
Federal  Constitution,  relative  to  the  right  of  navigating  the 
Mississippi  river.  Spain  denied  the  existence  of  that  right, 
and  a  temporary  suspension  of  it  had  been  proposed,  as 
the  basis  of  a  treaty  with  that  nation.  On  that  subject,  the 
feelings  of  the  people  in  the  West  had  been  so  excited,  as 
to  cause  alarming  apprehensions  for  the  safety  of  the  Union. 
Resolutions  were  passed  at  popular  meetings,  of  an  inflam- 
matory tendency,  and  letters  were  written  to  individuals 
in  the  east,  connected  with  the  administration  of  the  gov- 
ernment, demanding  the  free  navigation  of  the  river,  with- 
out further  delay.  They  charged  the  eastern  States  with  a 
conspiracy,  to  rob  the  West  of  a  right  which  was  vital  to 
its  prosperity,  by  surrendering  to  Spain  the  navigation  of 
that  important  river;  and  they  intimated,  very  plainly, 
that,  if  their  demand  was  not  complied  with,  the  people 


446  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

would  take  the  matter  into  their  own  hands,  and  secure 
themselves  either  by  force  or  by  treaty. 

This  excitement  appeared  so  alarming  as  to  induce 
President  Washington  to  write  an  explanatory  letter  on 
the  subject,  to  some  of  the  leading  citizens  of  Lexington; 
among  whom  were  George  Nicholas  and  John  Bracken- 
ridge,  disclosing  the  state  of  the  negotiation  with  Spain, 
contrary  to  his  usual  practice,  for  the  purpose  of  removing 
erroneous  impressions,  and  allaying  the  feeling  of  the  peo- 
ple. During  this  excitement  negotiations  were  carried  on 
secretly,  between  some  of  the  prominent  men  of  Kentucky, 
whose  names  were  generally  known,  and  the  Spanish 
authorities  at  New  Orleans;  which  it  was  said,  terminated 
in  an  agreement,  the  object  of  which  was  understood  to 
be,  to  detach  from  the  Union  a  part  of  the  western  country 
contiguous  to  the  river,  and  attach  it  to  Spain. 

Such  was  the  prevailing  opinion,  and  it  was  known  that 
some  of  the  leaders  in  the  project,  were  men  high  in  office, 
and  in  public  confidence ;  and  it  was  even  said  that  com- 
missions had  been  bestowed  on  some  of  them,  for  the  ex- 
press purpose  of  detaching  them  from  the  party.  This 
however,  will  not  be  credited,  if  for  no  other  reason,  be- 
cause it  was  inconsistent  with  the  uniform  policy  of  the 
President,  and  because  he  never  accomplished  his  purposes 
by  indirect  means,  or  committed  power  to  suspected  char- 
acters, for  the  purpose  of  reforming  them.  Be  this  as  it 
may,  the  patriotism  of  several  distinguished  persons,  both 
in  and  out  of  the  army,  was  very  strongly  doubted. 

While  that  impression  rested  on  the  public  mind,  a  man 
of  fine  personal  appearance  and  polished  manners,  by  the 
name  of  Powers,  arrived  at  Cincinnati,  from  New  Orleans, 
in  a  handsome,  neatly  finished  barge,  with  a  full  crrvv  of 
well  dressed  Spanish  boatmen,  professedly  on  a  trading 
voyage.  If  the  enterprise  was  undertaken  for  profit,  the 
cargo  on  board  did  not  seem  to  justify  the  expense  of  such 
an  outfit;  particularly  as  the  trip  could  not  be  completed 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  447 

in  less  than  six  months.  Some  river  traders  who  went  on 
board  with  the  view  of  purchasing,  made  an  estimate,  that 
the  proceeds  of  the  entire  cargo,  at  fair  prices,  would  not 
be  more  than  sufficient  to  defray  the  expense  of  the  voy- 
age ;  from  which  it  was  inferred,  that  there  was  something 
connected  with  it,  which  did  not  meet  the  eye.  This  sur- 
mise was  strengthened  by  the  fact,  that  the  barge  came  to, 
on  the  Kentucky  shore,  a  mile  below  the  town,  where  there 
were  neither  improvements  nor  inhabitants ;  and  that  she 
remained  there  one  or  two  days  before  she  came  up  to  the 
landing,  at  Cincinnati. 

Mr.  Powers,  who  commanded  the  barge,  was  an  intelli- 
gent, enterprising  man,  born  and  educated  in  Great  Britain, 
though  he  had  become  a  Spanish  subject;  and  it  was  un- 
derstood that  he  and  a  Mr.  Nolan,  who  professed  to  be  a 
trader  in  Spanish  horses,  and  who  probably  ascended  the 
river  in  the  same  boat,  were  in  the  employ  of  the  individu- 
als before  alluded  to.  From  these  circumstances  it  was 
believed,  that  the  barge  had  been  sent  by  the  Spanish 
Governor,  with  money,  for  purposes  not  consistent  with  the 
allegiance  due  from  Americans,  to  their  government;  and 
that  the  object  of  landing  on  the  Kentucky  shore,  in  the 
night,  was  to  deliver  it,  without  giving  rise  to  curiosity  or 
suspicion.  The  whole  movement  was  certainly  myste- 
rious, and  cannot  be  rationally  accounted  for,  on  the  com- 
mon principles  of  mercantile  business. 

This  expedition  was  connected,  in  public  opinion,  with  a 
similar  one  which  had  failed  during  the  preceding  year, 
under  the  management  of  Mr.  Owen,  an  Irish  gentle^ 
man  of  fine  education  and  very  polished  manners.  He 
had  then  recently  married  an  accomplished  young  lady,  in 
Elizabethtown,  New  Jersey;  and  soon  after  that,  came  to 
the  western  country  to  better  his  fortune.  He  brought  let- 
ters of  introduction  to  the  principal  officers  of  the  army; 
and  very  soon  after  his  arrival,  he  was  sent  to  New 
Orleans,  professedly  on  public  business.     From  that  place 


448  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

he  came  up  the  Mississippi  in  a  barge,  and  arrived  safely 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  But  soon  after  he  entered  that 
river,  he  was  murdered,  and  his  boat  plundered. 

The  first  report  of  the  catastrophe  was,  that  he  had  been 
murdered  and  robbed  by  the  Indians,  or  by  white  men, 
disguised  as  Indians.  According  to  another  version  of  the 
fatal  tragedy,  he  was  assassinated  by  the  crew  of  the 
barge,  by  whom  it  was  robbed  and  sunk.  Mr.  Owen  had 
a  large  amount  of  specie  on  board,  destined  for  Cincinnati; 
and  public  opinion  did  not  hesitate  to  name  the  persons  for 
whom  it  was  intended.  Both  these  shipments  were  con- 
sidered as  the  fruits  of  the  intrigue  above  alluded  to,  which 
was  generally  called  the  Sebastian  conspiracy. 

In  the  summer  of  1797,  the  American  troops  were 
ordered  to  the  West,  under  the  command  of  General 
Wilkinson.  In  the  year  following,  the  Mississippi  Terri- 
tory was  established  by  Congress ;  and  Winthrop  Sargent, 
having  resigned  the  office  of  Secretary  of  the  North- western 
Territory,  was  appointed  Governor  of  the  new  Territory. 
At  the  same  time,  William  H.  Harrison,  who  had  resigned 
his  commission  of  Captain  in  the  army,  was  appointed  to 
the  office  relinquished  by  Governor  Sargent. 

Before  the  Governor  left  Cincinnati  for  Natchez,  the  seat 
of  government  of  the  new  Territory,  he  gave  the  writer  of 
these  notes  a  pressing  invitation  to  accompany  him,  as 
a  member  of  his  family,  promising  him  his  patronage,  and 
holding  out  the  prospect  of  a  rapid  accumulation  of  for- 
tune. From  a  fear  of  the  effects  of  the  climate,  on  a  debili- 
tated constitution,  the  advantageous  and  flattering  invita- 
tion was  declined.  At  that  time,  titles  to  real  estate  in 
the  Mississippi  Valley,  were  in  a  very  unsettled  condition, 
and  it  was  foreseen,  that  as  soon  as  the  courts  of  the  Terri- 
tory were  established  by  Congress,  controversies,  involving 
property  of  immense  value,  would  arise;  suits  multiply, 
and  lawyers  flourish;  which  proved  to  be  the  case.  It  was 
therefore  apparent,  that  the  prospect  of  professional  ad- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  449 

vancement,  connected  with  the  patronage  of  the  Governor, 
presented  strong  temptations  to  risk  the  dangers  of  the' 
climate. 

Most  of  the  members  of  the  bar  who  migrated  to  that 
Territory,  at  that  early  day,  with  fair  pretensions  to  talents 
and   legal   knowledge,   and  who  were   proof  against   the 
miasma  of  the  valley,  soon  acquired  fortunes.     According 
to  the  theory  of  chances,  if  chance  there  be,  in  the  moral 
world,  the  writer  might  also  have  found  a  short  road  to 
wealth,  had  he  accepted  the  offer  of  Governor   Sargent; 
but  on  the  other  hand,  he  might  have  found  a  shorter  one' 
to  the  grave.     Upon  the  whole,  after  a  review  of  all  the 
circumstances   connected  with    the    decision   then   made, 
declining  the  nattering   invitation  of  the   Governor,   and 
giving  up  the  alluring  prospects  of  preferment  and  wealth, 
he  can  repeat  the  cheering  words  of  ^Eneas,  to  his  ship- 
wrecked   companions— "Forsan    et    h<zc    olim,    meminisse 
juvabity 
29 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

Sale  of  public  lands  on  credit. — Debts  due  to  Government  from  purchasers. 
— Exceeding  twenty  millions  of  dollars. — Embarrassments  in  the  Western 
Country. — Purchasers  unable  to  pay. — Lands  on  the  eve  of  forfeiture. — 
Resistance  to  the  execution  of  the  land  laws  apprehended. — A  plan  for  re- 
lief concerted  at  Cincinnati. — Memorial  to  Congress  drawn. — Printed,  and 
circulated  through  the  entire  West. — The  law  of  1821  passed,  in  conformity 
with  the  memorial. — Grant  of  lands  to  Ohio,  for  Canal  purposes. — Condi- 
tions annexed. — Not  assented  to. — Grant  lost. — In  1829-30,  the  conditions 
repealed,  and  a  further  grant  made. — Miami  Extension  completed. — Simon 
Kenton. — Biographical  sketches  of  him. 

Under  the  system  established  for  the  sale  of  the  public 
domain,  by  the  law  of  1800,  and  the  acts  supplementary 
thereto,  an  immense  debt  was  contracted,  and  became  due 
to  the  government  of  the  United  States,  from  the  people  of 
the  West,  exceeding  by  estimation,  the  entire  amount  of 
money  then  circulating  in  the  Western  States.  That  debt 
had  been  accumulating  more  than  twenty  years,  and  was 
swelling  daily,  with  increasing  rapidity. 

In  1821,  it  far  exceeded  the  ability  of  the  debtors  to  pay. 
Neither  the  speculator,  who  had  purchased  with  a  view  of 
selling  at  a  profit,  nor  the  farmer,  who  bought  for  the  pur- 
pose of  cultivation,  and  who  expected  nothing  more  than  to 
obtain  a  subsistence  for  his  family,  could  procure  the  money 
which  was  necessary  to  secure  his  title. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  first  emigrants  to  the  west,  and 
the  greater  part  of  those  who  followed  them,  from  time  to 
time,  were  compelled  by  necessity  to  purchase  on  credit. 
Some  of  them  exhausted  their  means  to  the  last  dollar,  in 
raising  the  first  payment  on  their  entries,  and  others  were 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  451 

not  able  to  make   up  that  sum  without  the   aid  of  their 
friends. 

The  writer,  who  was  one  of  the  early  adventurers  to  the 
West,  was  residing  in  the  Miami  country  before,  and  at  the 
time,  when  the  sales  of  the  public  lands  commenced,  and 
had  a  general  knowledge  of  the  situation  of  the  great  mass 
of  purchasers,  who  were  indebted  to  the  government.  It 
was  his  opinion,  repeatedly  expressed  in  conversation  and 
in  the  newspapers  of  the  day,  that  nine-tenths  of  those 
debtors  would  lose  their  lands  and  improvements,  under  the 
laws  then  in  force,  unless  relief  should  be  obtained  from 
Congress.  That  opinion  was  founded  on  the  general  con- 
dition of  the  country.  It  was  manifest  that  the  pecuniary 
embarrassment  which  prevailed,  was  great  and  universal — 
that  the  banks  in  the  Western  States,  had  all  suspended  pay- 
ment— that  credit  was  at  an  end — that  money  was  not  to 
be  had,  because  it  was  not  in  the  country,  and  of  course 
that  no  property  could  be  sold  for  cash  on  any  terms.  This 
appalling  prospect,  spread  a  deep  gloom  on  the  countenance 
of  the  community.  The  people  were  sinking  in  despair- 
hope  had  deserted  them,  and  they  were  preparing  to  meet 
their  fate,  with  the  best  resolution  they  could  command. 

The  debt  due  to  the  government  in  1820,  at  the  different 
Land  Offices  in  the  Western  States,  amounted  to  twenty- 
two  millions  of  dollars ;  a  sum  which  more  than  tripled  the 
ability  of  the  country  to  pay.  There  was  in  fact,  a  crisis 
in  its  affairs,  and  the  most  buoyant  spirits  could  not  indulge 
a  rational  hope,  that  the  gathering  storm  could  be  scat- 
tered, or  its  ruinous  consequences  be  repaired. 

Thousands  of  industrious  men,  some  of  whom  had  paid 
one,  some  two,  and  others  three  instalments  on  their  lands, 
and  had  toiled  day  and  night,  in  clearing,  enclosing,  and 
improving  them,  became  convinced  that  they  would  be  for- 
feited, and  their  money  and  labor  would  be  lost.  The 
amount  of  the  debt  beyond  the  means  of  payment,  was 


452  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

so  great,  as  to  threaten  a  general  bankruptcy  throughout 
the  West. 

When  this  state  of  things  became  generally  known,  and 
understood,  politicians  and  patriots,  in  every  part  of  the 
country,  felt  serious  fears  that  an  attempt  to  enforce  pay- 
ment, by  a  forfeiture  of  their  land,  under  the  laws  of  Con- 
gress, would  produce  resistance,  and  probably  terminate  in 
a  civil  war.  It  was  very  evident,  that  more  than  half  of 
the  men,  north-west  of  the  Ohio  river,  were  in  debt  to  the 
government,  and  it  was  a  reasonable  calculation,  that  all 
the  residue,  felt  a  warm  interest,  operating  in  their  favor. 

A  similar  state  of  things,  though  perhaps  not  to  the  same 
extent,  existed  in  Alabama,  Mississippi,  Louisiana,  and 
Missouri.  An  interest  so  universal,  and  so  exciting  to  the 
feelings,  pervading  such  a  vast  extent  of  country,  might  well 
create  forebodings  of  danger,  in  the  minds  of  reflecting  men. 
Portions  of  this  debt,  were  due  from  individuals  who  had 
purchased  for  the  purpose  of  selling  at  an  advance ;  and  al- 
though less  sympathy  was  felt  for  them,  than  for  the  actual 
cultivators  of  the  soil ;  yet,  in  point  of  fact,  their  claims 
were  equally  strong.  But  be  that  as  it  may,  it  was  quite 
evident,  that  if  an  attempt  had  been  made  to  enforce  the 
penalty  of  the  land  laws,  the  influence  of  that  class,  would 
have  been  much  the  most  operative,  in  organizing  and 
sustaining,  a  plan  of  resistance.  From  that  consideration, 
the  farmers  had  no  dispositon  to  separate  from  their  fellow 
sufferers,  by  presenting  a  claim  on  their  own  behalf,  foun- 
ded on  the  peculiarity  of  their  situation. 

When  the  nation  discovered  the  real  condition  of  those 
debtors,  a  feeling  of  sympathy  was  produced  in  their  behalf, 
throughout  the  Union,  and  at  the  same  time  many  anxious 
fears  were  excited,  as  to  the  consequences  of  an  attempt  to 
enforce  payment. 

The  writer  of  these  notes  being  one  of  the  sufferers, 
and   discovering  a  disposition   manifested  everywhere  to 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  453 

« 
remove  the  difficulty,  directed  his  anxious  attention  to  the 
subject,  with  a  view  of  devising  a  plan  of  relief.     It  was 

very  manifest,  without  pausing  to  deliberate,  that  the  debt 
never  could  be  paid;  and  consequently,  that  no  plan  predi- 
cated on  an  extension  of  time,  would  be  of  any  avail ;  and 
that  the  only  effectual  method  of  removing  the  difficulty, 
was  to  extinguish  the  claim  at  once.  That  object  it  was 
believed  might  be  accomplished,  by  obtaining  permission 
to  relinquish  as  much  of  the  land  entered,  as  the  purchaser 
could  not  pay  for,  with  the  privilege  of  applying  the  money 
which  had  been  paid  in,  on  relinquished  tracts,  to  the  credit 
of  such  other  tracts  as  might  be  retained,  in  such  manner 
as  to  save  the  improvement  of  the  actual  settler.  That 
privilege,  and  a  release  of  back  interest,  it  was  believed, 
would  fully  accomplish  the  object. 

This  view  of  the  subject,  he  stated  to  his  friends,  Mr. 
G.  A.  Worth,  Cashier  of  the  branch  bank  at  Cincinnati, 
who  was  one  of  the  debtors  to  the  government,  and  to 
Judge  Burke,  Postmaster  at  that  place ;  both  of  whom  cor- 
dially approved  of  the  plan.  He  then  drew  up  the  form  of 
a  memorial  to  Congress,  setting  forth  the  facts,  and  praying 
that  a  law  might  be  passed,  granting  relief  to  the  memo- 
rialists, in  the  specific  manner  stated  above ;  which  was 
submitted  to  the  persons  before  named,  and  approved  of. 
More  than  a  thousand  copies  of  it  were  then  neatly  printed 
on  letter  paper,  by  Messrs.  Morgan  &,  Lodge,  who  being 
furnished  with  the  materials,  declined  receiving  any  com- 
pensation for  their  labor.  The  memorials  were  accom- 
panied by  a  circular  letter  explanatory  of  the  object,  and 
were  sent  to  every  post  office  in  the  States  and  Territories 
in  which  public  lands  had  been  sold;  directed  to  influen- 
tial men,  who  were  earnestly  requested  to  multiply  copies, 
and  send  them  to  every  village  and  neighborhood  in  the 
States  and  Territories  in  which  they  resided.  Among 
others,  a  copy  was  sent  to  Governor  Worthington,  of  Ohio, 
who  approved  of  the  plan,  and  exerted  his  influence,  which 


454  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

was  very  prevailing,  to  carry  it  to  a  successful  termina- 
tion. 

The  scheme  met  with  universal  approbation,  and  in  a 
short  time,  copies  of  the  memorial  were  in  circulation  in 
every  part  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  valley.  The  con- 
sequence was,  that  at  the  succeeding  session  of  Congress, 
the  tables  of  both  Houses  were  literally  loaded  with  these 
memorials,  signed  by  thousands  of  the  inhabitants  of  all 
parts  of  the  western  and  south-western  country ;  and  with 
here  and  there  an  exception,  they  were  in  the  precise  form 
of  the  original,  drawn  and  printed  at  Cincinnati.  The  sub- 
ject was  taken  up  in  Congress  with  great  earnestness,  and 
the  act  of  1821  was  passed,  granting  relief  in  the  form 
requested  in  the  memorial. 

In  the  discussion  of  the  subject,  it  was  evident,  that  the 
leading  members  were  induced  to  support  the  measure, 
from  an  apprehension  of  the  consequences,  to  which  the 
continuance  of  the  debt  would  lead;  and  from  a  conviction, 
that  it  was  necessary  to  change  the  land  system,  so  as  to 
require  all  sales  thereafter  to  be  made  for  cash.  Under 
the  influence  of  those  considerations,  the  Hon.  Rufus  King, 
of  New  York,  discussed  the  subject  in  the  Senate,  with 
great  talent  and  energy.  He  advocated  the  plan,  because 
it  united  the  double  object,  of  extinguishing  the  existing 
debt,  and  of  preventing  the  accumulation  of  another. 

To  reconcile  the  community  to  this  important  alteration 
in  the  land  system,  Mr.  King  proposed  to  reduce  the  price 
of  the  public  land,  from  two  dollars,  to  one  dollar  and 
twenty-five  cents,  and  to  subdivide  the  surveys  into  tracts 
of  eighty  acres,  so  as  to  put  it  in  the  power  of  every  citizen, 
who  was  not  a  confirmed  '  loafer,'  to  become  an  independent 
freeholder.  With  those  modifications,  the  plan  proposed 
in  the  memorial,  was  adopted,  with  a  degree  of  unanimity 
almost  unparalleled. 

By  the  success  of  that  project,  the  entire  West  was  re- 
lieved from  a  state  of  depression,  which,  had  it  been  con- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  455 

tinued,  must  have  produced  results  too  distressing  to  be 
contemplated.  In  practice,  the  plan  adopted  was  effective. 
It  relieved  the  nation  from  apprehension,  and  the  people  of 
the  West,  from  embarrassment,  and  it  strengthened  their 
confidence  in  the  benignity  of  the  general  government, 
while  it  removed  a  cause  of  disquietude  and  distress,  which 
threatened  the  peace  of  the  country. 

There  is  another  subject  connected  with  the  disposal  of 
the  public  lands,  full  of  interest  to  the  people  of  Ohio,  and 
which  laid  the  foundation  of  their  system  of  internal  im- 
provements. In  May,  1828,  Congress  granted  to  that  State, 
five  hundred  thousand  acres  of  land,  for  the  purpose  of  aid- 
ing her,  in  the  payment  of  the  debt,  which  had  been,  or 
might  thereafter  be,  contracted  in  the  construction  of  her 
canals. 

The  act  containing  that  grant  required,  that  the  canals 
which  had  been  commenced  prior  to  its  passage,  should  be 
completed  in  seven  years.  By  the  same  law  there  was 
granted  to  the  State,  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  in  the  ex- 
tension of  the  Miami  canal,  from  Dayton  to  the  Lake,  by 
the  Maumee  route,  a  quantity  of  land,  equal  to  one -half  of 
five  sections  in  width,  on  each  side  of  the  canal,  from  Day- 
ton to  the  Maumee  river,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Auglaize,  so 
far  as  the  same  should  be  located  through  the  public  lands. 
This  grant  for  the  benefit  of  the  Miami  Extension,  was 
made  on  the  express  condition,  that  the  extension  from 
Dayton  to  the  Lake,  should  be  commenced  in  five  yean, 
and  completed  within  twenty  years ;  or  the  State  should  be 
bound  to  pay  the  United  States  the  price  of  the  land. 

The  seventh  section  declared,  that  the  act  should  not  take 
effect,  unless  the  Legislature  of  Ohio,  at  their  first  session 
thereafter,  should  express  the  assent  of  the  State,  to  the 
several  provisions  contained  in  it;  without  which  it  should 
be  wholly  inoperative.  These  conditions  excited  serious 
apprehensions  in  the  minds  of  the  Legislature,  and  the  re- 
flecting part  of  the  community.     They  were  unwilling  to 


456  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

lose  the  grant  of  five  hundred  thousand  acres,  and  there- 
fore assented  to  the  condition  of  finishing  the  canals  from 
Cleveland  to  Portsmouth,  and  from  Cincinnati  to  Dayton, 
within  the  period  stipulated;  but,  as  it  was  believed  that 
the  extension  of  the  Miami  canal,  from  Dayton,  on  which 
no  money  had  been  expended,  would  be  attended  with 
great  difficulty;  and  that  the  cost  of  construction  above  the 
amount  of  the  grant,  might  be  greater  than  the  State  would 
be  able  to  bear,  the  Legislature  refused  their  assent  to  the 
responsibility  of  completing  it,  within  the  time  limited ;  in 
consequence  of  which  the  grant  was  forfeited  and  lost,  by 
the  express  provisions  of  the  act. 

Thus  the  matter  stood  at  the  commencement  of  the  ses- 
sion of  Congress  of  1829-30.  At  that  time,  Mr.  Burnet,  of 
Cincinnati,  had  resigned  his  seat  on  the  bench  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  Ohio,  and  had  been  chosen  by  the  Legisla- 
ture, to  fill  the  vacancy  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States, 
occasioned  by  the  resignation  of  William  H.  Harrison. 

Mr.  B.  felt  a  deep  interest  in  the  completion  of  the  Mi- 
ami Extension,  and  determined  to  make  an  effort  to  obtain 
the  passage  of  a  law,  for  the  triple  purpose  of  reviving  the 
former  law — removing  the  penalty  which  it  imposed  on  the 
State,  and  obtaining  an  additional  grant  of  land,  so  as  to 
ensure  the  construction  of  that  most  valuable  work.  The 
law  of  1828,  which  contained  the  penalty  just  mentioned, 
had  not  made  any  provision  to  aid  in  the  construction  of 
such  portions  of  it,  as  passed  over  lands  not  then  the  pro- 
perty of  the  government.  Consequently,  from  Dayton  to  the 
Indian  boundary,  the  State  was  to  defray  the  entire  expense, 
without  the  aid  of  government,  as  the  whole  of  that  land 
had  been  previously  sold;  neither  were  they  to  receive  any 
thing  for  such  portions  of  the  route,  between  the  Irdian 
boundary  and  Defiance,  as  had  been  located  on  grounds 
previously  sold.  Those  portions  of  the  route,  amounted 
probably  to  one-fourth  of  the  distance  from  Dayton  to  De- 
fiance, for   which  no   provision   had  been   made;   conse- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  457 

quently  the  entire  expense  of  that  portion  of  it,  must  have 
fallen  on  the  State. 

The  feeling  which  had  been  manifested  in  the  Legisla- 
ture, and  seemed  to  occupy  the  minds  of  a  large  portion  of 
the  people  of  the  State,  clearly  indicated  a  determination 
to  persevere  in  declining  the  grant,  rather  than  assume  the 
responsibility  of  completing  the  work  within  the  time  speci- 
fied, under  the  forfeiture  imposed  by  the  law.  The  question, 
therefore,  was,  whether  it  were  better  to  abandon  the  ofTer, 
and  suffer  that  improvement  to  be  lost,  or  make  an  effort 
to  get  rid  of  the  objection.  It  seemed  to  be  manifest,  that 
the  grant  would  have  been  accepted,  and  the  extension 
commenced  under  the  first  act,  if  it  had  not  contained  the 
penalty.  It  was  therefore  a  natural  conclusion,  that  a  re- 
moval of  the  penalty,  would  obviate  the  objection,  and  es- 
pecially so,  if,  in  addition  to  that  benefit,  a  further  grant  of 
land  could  be  obtained.  Under  those  circumstances,  Mr. 
B.  did  not  hesitate  in  resolving  to  make  an  effort  to  accom- 
plish both  objects. 

He  mentioned  the  subject  to  his  colleague,  Judge  Rug- 
gles,  and  to  most,  if  not  all,  the  members  from  Ohio.  They 
gave  it  as  their  decided  opinion,  that  the  attempt  would  be 
abortive,  particularly  that  part  of  it  which  contemplated  an 
additional  grant  of  land ;  but  all  expressed  their  readiness 
to  co-operate  in  supporting  the  measure.  The  prospect  of 
success  was  by  no  means  promising,  nor  were  the  hopes  of 
accomplishing  it,  very  sanguine ;  but  the  importance  of  the 
object  was  so  great,  that  he  resolved  to  make  the  attempt. 

For  the  purpose  of  bringing  the  subject  before  the  Senate, 
in  January,  1830,  he  offered  a  resolution,  instructing  the 
Committee  on  Public  Lands,  to  enquire,  how  far  it  was  ex- 
pedient, to  alter  and  to  modify  the  act  entitled  "  An  act  to 
aid  the  State  of  Ohio,  in  constructing  the  Miami  Canal, 
from  Dayton  to  Lake  Erie ;"  and  to  grant  a  quantity  of  land 
to  said  State  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  the  Canals  author- 


458  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

ised  by  law,  and  to  enquire  particularly  if  it  were  not 
expedient  to  repeal  so  much  of  said  act,  as  provides  "  that 
the  extension  of  said  Miami  Canal,  shall  be  completed 
within  twenty  years,  or  that  the  State  shall  be  bound  to  pay 
to  the  United  States  the  amount  of  any  lands  previously 
sold."  The  resolution  was  adopted,  and  soon  after,  Mr. 
Barton  of  Missouri,  Chairman  of  the  Land  Committee,  gave 
notice  to  Mr.  B.  that  the  Committee  were  ready  to  hear 
the  grounds  of  his  application. 

At  their  next  stated  meeting  he  attended,  and  addressed 
them  at  some  length  in  support  of  the  claims  of  Ohio.  He 
urged  the  great  progress  she  had  made  in  her  works  of  in- 
ternal improvement — the  advantage  the  general  govern- 
ment would  receive,  by  the  increase  of  value,  which  those 
improvements  would  give  to  her  remaining  lands — the 
great  hardship  of  being  required  to  pay  government  the 
price  of  the  land,  after  the  proceeds  of  it  had  been  faithfully 
expended,  in  the  prosecution  of  the  work — the  impolicy  of 
legislating,  so  as  to  create  penalties  or  debts,  against  any 
of  the  States. 

He  also  urged  the  claims  of  the  people  of  Ohio,  as  the 
first  pioneers  to  the  public  domain,  and  their  sufferings  du- 
ring the  Indian  war,  which  began  with  the  commencement 
of  the  settlement  of  the  Western  Territory.  He  stated  their 
agency  in  bringing  that  war  to  a  successful  close ;  and  the 
fact,  that  they  had  been  compelled  to  pay  two  dollars,  as 
the  minimum  price  of  their  lands,  making  an  excess  of  about 
six  hundred  thousand  dollars  above  what  it  would  have 
cost  them,  at  the  then  reduced  price. 

He  also  laid  before  them  a  statement,  obtained  from  the 
Commissioner  of  the  General  Land  Office,  showing  that 
the  whole  sum  received  from  the  sales  of  public  lands,  prior 
to  that  time,  was  thirty  seven  millions,  five  hundred  and 
ninety  seven  thousand  six  hundred  and  fifteen  dollars,  and 
that  the  people  of  Ohio,  had  paid  of  that  sum,  sixteen  millions 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  459 

four  hundred  and  ten  thousand  one  hundred  and  fifteen  dol- 
lars, a  large  part  of  which  had  been  paid  under  the  two 
dollar  minimum. 

He  also  exhibited  a  statement  of  the  lands,  within  the 
limits  of  Ohio,  appropriated  by  Congress  to  satisfy  claims, 
which  originated  under  the  old  confederation,  amounting 
to  about  nine  millions  of  acres.  Estimating  those  appro- 
priations, at  the  minimum  price,  it  appeared  that  the  gov- 
ernment had  realized  from  their  lands  in  Ohio,  in  cash  and 
in  the  payment  of  Revolutionary  claims,  about  thirty-four 
millions  of  dollars,  almost  double  the  amount  at  that  time 
received  from  the  public  lands,  in  every  other  State  and 
Territory  in  the  Union.  He  also  cited  cases  in  which 
grants  of  land  for  internal  improvements,  had  been  made 
to  other  States,  without  the  penalty  imposed  on  Ohio. 

On  the  exhibition  of  those  facts,  the  committee  were  una- 
nimously of  opinion,  that  the  claim  was  reasonable,  and 
ought  to  be  granted. 

The  next  day,  at  the  request  of  the  chairman,  Mr.  B. 
drew  a  report,  embodying  the  principal  facts  in  support  of 
the  claim,  and  also  a  bill  to  carry  it  into  effect.  That  re- 
port and  bill  were  approved  by  the  committee,  and,  by  their 
order,  presented  to  the  Senate  by  Mr.  Barton,  with  an  ex- 
pression of  their  opinion,  that  the  bill  ought  to  pass.  It  did 
pass,  and  became  a  law  during  the  session.  It  repealed  that 
part  of  the  act  of  1828,  which  contained  the  penalty,  and 
granted  to  the  State  an  additional  quantity  of  land  equal  to 
five  sections  for  every  mile  of  the  canal  located  on  land 
previously  sold  by  the  government;  and  authorised  the 
Governor  of  the  State  to  make  the  locations. 

From  Dayton  to  the  Indian  boundary  line,  the  land  had 
been  entirely  sold.  Some  tracts  had  also  been  disposed  of 
above  that  line,  over  which  the  canal  passed.  On  a  fair 
estimate  of  these  distances,  it  will  be  found  that  the  law 
made  an  additional  grant  to  the  State  of  about  two  hundred 
and  fifty  sections.     Judging  from  the  feelings  entertained 


460  BURNET'S   NOTES  ON  THE 

by  a  majority  of  the  State,  at  that  time,  in  relation  to  the 
Miami  extension,  it  may  be  safely  assumed,  that  the  com- 
pletion of  that  important  work  has  been  effected  by  the 
passing  of  the  act  in  question.  The  proceedings  referred 
to  above  may  be  found  in  the  Senate  Journal  of  the  first 
session  of  the  Twenty-first  Congress,  pages  108,  109,  127, 
190,  and  193. 

The  remainder  of  this  chapter  will  be  occupied  by  a 
statement  of  some  of  the  prominent  incidents  in  the  event- 
ful life  of  Simon  Kenton,  who  was,  without  doubt,  one  of 
the  bravest  and  most  interesting  of  the  Western  pioneers — 
he  was  excelled  by  none,  and  equalled  only  by  his  precursor, 
Daniel  Boone.  His  biography,  as  far  as  it  has  been  pre- 
served, will  be  read  with  interest,  and  his  name  will  never 
be  forgotten  in  the  valley  of  the  great  West.  He  was  the 
coadjutor  of  Boone  throughout  the  protracted  struggle  for 
the  occupancy  of  the  rich  forests  and  prairies  on  either  side 
of  the  Ohio.  The  exposure  and  suffering  which  these  reso- 
lute adventurers  endured  in  the  accomplishment  of  that 
object,  can  scarcely  be  conceived  of,  much  less  realized,  by 
one  who  has  not  been  a  pioneer  himself. 

While  the  United  States  were  British  colonies,  and  Ken- 
tucky and  Ohio  were  in  their  native,  uncultivated  state,  fill- 
ed with  Indians,  and  wholly  destitute  of  white  inhabitants, 
those  heroic  men,  as  if  moved  by  the  finger  of  Providence, 
left  the  abodes  of  civilization,  entire  strangers  to  each  other, 
and  ventured  into  the  midst  of  a  boundless  wilderness — 
neither  having  any  knowledge  of  the  purpose  or  the  move- 
ment of  the  other. 

Boone  led  the  way  from  Maryland — crossed  the  moun- 
tains, and  entered  the  valley  of  Kentucky  in  1709;  Kenton 
followed  from  Virginia,  in  1773.  The  former  emigrated 
from  choice,  to  gratify  his  natural  taste,  after  full  delibera- 
tion, and  after  having  calculated  the  consequences.  Not  so 
with  the  latter — he  fled  to  the  wilderness,  to  escape  the 
consequences  of  a  supposed  crime.     He  had  unfortunately 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY. 


4G1 


become  involved  in  a  quarrel  with  a  young  man  of  his 
neighborhood,  with  whom  he  had  lived  in  habits  of  great 
intimacy  and  friendship,  and,  as  he  supposed,  had  killed 
him  in  a  personal  conflict.  For  the  purpose  of  avoiding 
the  consequences  of  that  imaginary  homicide,  and  to  escape, 
if  possible,  from  the  distress  of  his  own  feelings,  he  left  his 
home  and  his  friends,  without  waiting  to  ascertain  the 
result,  and,  unaccompanied  by  any  human  being,  crossed 
the  mountains  and  descended  into  the  valley  of  the  Big 
Kanawha,  under  the  assumed  name  of  Simon  Butler.  He 
retained  that  name  several  years,  and  until  he  received 
information  that  his  friend,  who,  he  supposed  had  fallen 
by  his  hand,  had  recovered  from  the  blow  inflicted,  and  was 
living  and  in  health.  He  then  resumed  his  proper  name, 
and  disclosed  the  reason  which  had  induced  him  to  change 
it  for  the  name  of  Butler. 

It  is  a  matter  of  much  regret,  that  so  small  a  portion  of 
the  achievements  of  this  interesting  man  have  been  pre- 
served. This  may  be  accounted  for  by  the  fact,  that  a 
large  part  of  his  life  was  spent  in  the  wilderness,  either  in 
solitude,  or  associated  with  adventurers  of  the  same  cast 
with  himself;  and  it  explains  the  reason  why  we  are  not 
only  without  a  connected  narrative  of  his  life,  but  have  so 
few  of  the  isolated  transactions  of  it  perpetuated. 

It  is  known,  however,  that  after  he  joined  the  adven- 
turers in  the  district  of  Kentucky,  about  two  or  three  years 
before  the  Declaration  of  American  Independence,  he  was 
engaged  in  all  the  battles  and  skirmishes  between  the 
white  inhabitants  and  the  savages.  He  was  also  an  en- 
terprising, intrepid  leader,  in  most  of  the  expeditions 
against  the  Indian  towns  northwest  of  the  Ohio.  These 
conflicts  continued  during  the  long  period  of  twenty  years, 
intervening  between  the  time  of  their  commencement  and 
the  decisive  battle  at  the  Rapids  of  the  Maumee,  in  Au- 
gust, 1794,  which  was  followed  by  a  general  peace. 


462  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

He  was  a  striking  example  of  cool,  deliberate  bravery, 
united  with  a  tender,  sympathising,  heart.  In  times  of 
danger  and  conflict,  all  his  energies  were  enlisted  in  the 
struggle.  He  fought  for  victory,  regardless  of  consequen- 
ces, but  the  moment  the  contest  was  over,  and  his  feel- 
ings resumed  their  usual  state,  he  could  sit  down  and  weep 
over  the  misery  he  had  assisted  in  producing. 

During  a  large  portion  of  his  life,  solitude,  danger,  and 
want,  were  his  attendants,  and  necessity  had  so  familiar- 
ised him  to  privations,  that  he  could  endure  abstinence 
from  food,  and  subsist  on  as  small  a  quantity  of  it,  without 
injury  to  health  or  strength,  as  the  savages  themselves. 

During  his  residence  in  the  wilderness,  the  land  war- 
rants, issued  by  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia,  were  easily 
obtained.  After  the  holders  were  permitted  to  locate  them, 
west  of  the  mountains,  he  found  no  difficulty  in  possessing 
himself  of  as  many  of  them  as  he  desired ;  and  having  tra- 
versed the  wilderness  in  every  direction,  his  topographical 
knowledge  enabled  him  to  select  for  location,  the  best  and 
most  valuable  tracts  in  the  country.  Had  he  possessed  the 
information  necessary  to  enable  him  to  make  his  entries 
sufficiently  special  to  stand  the  test  of  legal  scrutiny,  his 
locations  would  have  been  the  foundation  of  a  princely  for- 
tune for  himself  and  his  family. 

Unfortunately,  however,  he  was  uneducated,  and  al- 
though his  locations  were  judicious,  and  his  entries  were 
made  in  the  expressive  language  suggested  by  a  vigorous 
mind,  yet  they  were  not  sufficiently  technical,  in  conse- 
quence of  which,  the  greater  part  of  them  were  lost,  by 
subsequent  entries,  more  specifically  and  technically  made. 
He  succeeded  however,  in  retaining  a  few  of  them,  which 
were  sufficient  to  make  him  entirely  independent. 

The  first  authentic  information  we  have  of  him,  after  he 
left  the  place  of  his  nativity,  is,  that  he  was  engaged  in 
the  great  battle  fought  at  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Kanawha, 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  463 

between  the  Indians  and  the  troops  of  Lord  Dunmore, 
while  he  was  Governor  of  the  Province  of  Virginia;  in 
which  he,  (Kenton)  was  distinguished  by  his  bravery. 

The  next  intelligence  is,  that  in  1775,  he  was  in  the  dis- 
trict of  Kentucky  commencing  a  station,  near  the  spot 
where  the  town  of  Washington  now  stands.  Not  long 
after  that  work  was  done,  the  station  was  discovered, 
attacked,  and  destroyed,  by  the  Indians,  and  it  does  not 
appear  that  he  made  any  effort  to  re-occupy  it  till  1784, 
after  the  treaty  of  peace  with  Great  Britain.  In  that  year 
he  rebuilt  his  block  house  and  cabins,  and  proceeded  to 
raise  a  crop ;  and  though  frequently  disturbed  by  the  In- 
dians, he  continued  to  occupy  and  improve  it,  till  he  re- 
moved his  family  to  Ohio,  about  eight  or  nine  years  after 
the  treaty  of  Greenville. 

He  was  always  considered  one  of  the  boldest  and  most 
active  of  the  defenders  of  the  western  country,  from  the 
commencement  of  its  settlement  till  the  close  of  Indian 
hostilities.  In  all  their  battles  and  expeditions  he  bore  a 
conspicuous  part.  He  was  taken  prisoner  several  times, 
and  conveyed  to  the  Indian  towns,  but  in  every  instance 
made  his  escape  and  returned  to  his  friends.  On  one  of 
those  occasions  they  determined  to  destroy  him,  by  a  most 
barbarous  plan.  He  was  put  on  a  horse,  without  saddle  or 
bridle,  his  feet  lashed  under  the  body  of  the  animal,  which 
was  turned  loose  and  left  to  follow  the  party  to  the  Miami 
villages.  In  that  way  he  was  compelled  to  travel  several 
days  in  succession.  When  he  reached  the  end  of  his  jour- 
ney, he  was  bruised  from  head  to  foot,  and  some  of  his 
limbs  were  broken.  Although  it  was  the  manifest  object 
of  the  savages  to  destroy  his  life  by  that  process,  yet  he 
survived,  and  after  his  bruises  and  fractures  were  healed, 
by  the  kind  care  and  attention  of  the  squaws,  he  made  his 
escape  and  returned  to  his  family. 

On  another  occasion  he  was  captured  when  on  an  expe- 
dition against  the  Wabash  villages,  and  taken  to  one  of 


464  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

the  remote  Indian  towns,  where  a  council  was  held  to 
decide  on  his  fate,  which  condemned  him  to  run  the  gaunt- 
let, as  it  was  called.  In  the  infliction  of  that  cruel  punish- 
ment the  Indians  formed  two  lines,  about  six  feet  apart, 
each  of  them  armed  with  a  whip  or  a  club.  The  prisoner 
was  compelled  to  run  through  those  lines,  from  one  end  to 
the  other,  and  receive  a  blow  from  every  Indian  as  he 
passed.  If  he  fell  in  the  race  he  was  immediately  put  to 
death,  but  if  he  succeeded  in  getting  through,  without  fall- 
ing, and  afterwards  recovered  of  his  wounds,  he  was 
spared.  Kenton  passed  through  the  dreadful  ordeal  with- 
out falling,  but  was  so  bruised  and  exhausted  that  he  fell 
to  the  ground  the  moment  he  reached  the  goal.  On  that 
occasion  he  was  again  indebted  to  the  sympathy  and  medi- 
cal skill  of  the  squaws,  by  whose  kind  offices  his  life  was 
saved.  Soon  after  his  recovery,  he  again  escaped  from  his 
captors. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  war  of  1812,  he  was  a 
citizen  of  Ohio,  residing  in  the  vicinity  of  Urbana,  and  then 
bore  on  his  person  the  scars  of  many  a  bloody  conflict;  yet 
he  repaired  to  the  American  camp,  and  tendered  his  ser- 
vices as  a  volunteer  in  the  army.  His  personal  bravery 
was  proverbial;  his  skill  and  tact  in  the  modes  of  Indian 
warfare  were  known  throughout  the  West;  and  as  the 
frontier  at  that  time  abounded  with  Indians,  most  of  whom 
had  joined  the  British  standard,  the  services  of  such  an 
experienced  Indian  fighter,  as  Simon  Kenton,  were  highly 
appreciated  by  General  Harrison  and  Governor  Meigs, 
each  of  whom  had  known  him  personally  for  many  years. 
The  offer  was  of  course,  promptly  accepted,  and  the  com- 
mand of  a  regiment  conferred  on  him. 

While  a  portion  of  the  army  were  stationed  at  Urbana, 
a  mutinous  plan  was  formed  by  some  of  the  militia,  to 
attack  an  encampment  of  friendly  Indians,  who  had  been 
threatened  by  the  hostile  tribes,  and  were  invited  to  remove 
with  their  families,  within  our  frontier  settlements,  as  a 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  4^5 

place  of  safety,  under  an  assurance  that  they  should  be 
protected. 

Kenton  remonstrated  against  the  movement,  as  being 
not  only  mutinous,  but  treacherous  and  cowardly.  He  vin- 
dicated the  Indian  character  against  the  false  charges 
which  were  alledged,  in  justification  of  the  outrage  they 
were  about  to  perpetrate,  and  warned  them  against  the 
infamy  they  would  incur,  by  destroying  a  defenceless  band 
of  men,  women,  and  children,  who  had  been  induced  to 
place  themselves  in  their  power,  by  a  solemn  promise  of 
protection. 

He  appealed  to  their  humanity,  their  honor,  and  their 
duty,  as  soldiers.  He  contrasted  his  knowledge  of  the 
character  of  those  unfortunate  people,  with  their  ignorance 
of  it.  He  told  them  he  had  endured  suffering  and  torture 
at  their  hands  again  and  again,  but  that  it  was  in  time  of 
war,  when  they  were  defending  their  wives  and  children, 
and  when  he  was  seeking  to  destroy  and  exterminate 
them;  and  that,  under  those  circumstances,  he  had  no 
right  to  complain,  and  never  did  complain.  But,  said  he, 
in  time  of  peace  they  have  alwrays  been  kind,  faithful 
friends,  and  generous,  trustworthy,  men. 

Having  exhausted  the  means  of  persuasion,  without 
effect,  and  finding  them  still  resolved  on  executing  their 
purpose,  he  took  a  rifle  and  called  on  them  to  proceed  at 
once  to  the  execution  of  the  foul  deed;  declaring  with 
great  firmness,  that  he  would  accompany  them  to  the 
encampment,  and  shoot  down  the  first  man  who  attempted 
to  molest  it.  My  life,  said  he,  is  drawing  to  a  close;  what 
remains  of  it  is  not  worth  much;  but  much  or  little,  he 
was  resolved,  that  if  they  entered  the  Indian  camp,  it 
should  be  done  by  passing  over  his  corpse.  Knowing  that 
the  old  veteran  would  fulfil  his  promise,  their  hearts  failed 
them — not  one  ventured  to  take  the  lead: — -their  purpose 
was  abandoned,  and  the  poor  Indians  were  saved. 

Though  Kenton  was  brave  as  Napoleon,  and  as  per- 
30 


466  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

fectly  regardless  of  danger,  when  engaged  in  the  discharge 
of  duty,  yet  he  was  mild  and  amiable,  and  had  a  heart 
that  could  bleed  at  the  distress  of  others.  He  belonged  to 
that  class  of  heroic  men,  whose  courage  in  battle  never 
fails,  and  who,  in  the  walks  of  private  life,  are  always 
mild,  amiable,  and  unassuming  —  qualities  which  are  the 
usual  attendants  of  consummate  bravery. 

When  Mr.  B.  first  became  acquainted  with  him,  at 
Marietta,  in  the  fall  of  1796,  he  was  attending  the  Gen- 
eral Court  of  the  Territory  as  a  witness  on  behalf  of  a 
young  man  who  had  been  indicted  for  the  murder  of  a  Mr. 
Miller.  He  was  then  possessed  of  a  large  estate — and  a 
more  generous,  kind  hearted  man,  did  not  inhabit  the 
earth.  His  door  was  always  open.  "Neither  stranger  nor 
friend  ever  found  it  shut  and  the  latch-string  pulled  in." 
Travelers  of  every  grade  were  received  with  kindness, 
treated  with  hospitality,  and  pressed  to  stay.  His  resi- 
dence was  in  Kentucky,  in  the  vicinity  of  Washington, 
where  he  cultivated  a  thousand  acres  of  land,  equal  in 
fertility  to  any  in  the  world. 

In  1797  Mr.  B.  on  his  way  from  Limestone  to  Lexington, 
stopped  a  day  at  his  house,  to  redeem  a  pledge  he  had  given 
him  at  the  Marietta  court,  in  the  fall  of  the  preceding  year ; 
and  partook  of  his  hospitality  with  great  satisfaction. 

Unfortunately,  Kenton  was  illiterate,  and  altogether  too 
confiding.  He  judged  others  by  himself,  and  was  not  con- 
scious of  the  imposition  to  which  he  was  exposed.  He  be- 
lieved men  were  honest,  nor  did  he  awake  from  that  delusion, 
till  he  was  defrauded  and  robbed  of  all  his  estate.  This  was 
done  principally,  by  one  of  his  own  relatives,  whom  he  had 
long  cherished  and  sustained,  and  to  whom  he  had  confi- 
ded the  management  of  his  affairs.  At  an  advanced  age, 
he  was  reduced  from  affluence  to  abject  poverty,  and  left 
dependent  on  the  charity  of  a  son-in-law,  who  was  himself 
poor,  and  depended  on  the  labor  of  his  hands  for  his  daily 
bread.     He  was  nevertheless  cheerful  and  happy,  and  al- 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  4G7 

though  he  and  hi*  offspring  were  in  poverty,  and  the  chil- 
dren of  his  relative,  who  had  deceived  and  plundered  him, 
were  living  in  affluence,  on  the  spoils  of  his  fortune,  he  told 
Mr.  Burnet  in  one  of  their  last  conversations,  that  he  would 
not  exchange  situations  with  them  for  the  wealth  of  the 
world.     "lam,"  said  he,  "blessed  with  health— I  have  a 
quiet  conscience— I  can  sleep  calmly,  and  am  contented." 
Gov.  Vance,  of  Ohio,  was  a  warm  personal  friend  of  the 
unfortunate,  but  highly  meritorious  pioneer;  and  had  suc- 
ceeded in  getting  a  bill  through  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, granting  him  a  pension,  at  two  successive  sessions, 
before  Mr.  B.  became  a  member  of  the   Senate.     When 
these  friends  of  Kenton  met  at  Washington  City,  in  1828, 
they  determined  to  make  another  effort,  in  his  behalf.   Gen. 
Vance  undertook  to  renew  the  application  in  the  House, 
and  get  a  bill  passed  at  as  early  a  period  in  the  session,  as 
was  possible;  and  Mr.  B.  engaged  to  give  it  a  zealous  sup- 
port in  the  Senate.     Mr.  Vance  redeemed  his  pledge,  and 
carried  the  bill  through  the  House.     It  came  to  the  Senate 
late  in  the  session,  and  was  referred  to  the  appropriate 
committee.     Mr.  B.  advocated  it  before  the  committee  at 
their  room,  and  was  so  fortunate  as  to  satisfy  them,  that  it 
was  just,  and  to  induce  them  to  report  it  back,  with  their 
opinion,  that  it  ought  to  pass. 

When  it  came  on  the  calendar,  there  was  such  a  long  list 
of  orders  standing  before  it,  and  having  preference,  that 
there  was  no  hope  of  getting  it  taken  up  during  the  session, 
unless  those  preceding  it,  were  postponed  by  the  Senate. 
A  motion  was  made  for  that  purpose  by  Mr.  B.  which  for- 
tunately succeeded.  The  bill  was  then  taken  up,  as  in 
Committee  of  the  Whole,  and  it  was  insisted,  that  the  case 
did  not  come  within  the  provisions  of  any  of  the  pension 
laws,  on  the  statute  book,  and  the  strict  constructionists  op- 
posed it  on  that  ground.  They  alledged,  that  it  would  form 
a  dangerous  precedent,  if  it  should  be  passed. 

Their  opposition,  however,  was  overcome,  by  a  full  exhi- 


468  BURNET'S  NOTES. 

bition  of  the  services  and  sufferings  of  the  applicant.  It 
was  shown,  that  his  life  had  been  a  succession  of  exposure 
and  privation  in  defending  the  frontier  settlements,  from 
the  desperate  battle  of  Point  Pleasant,  in  1774,  to  the  last 
victory  of  Harrison,  on  the  Thames.  The  friends  of  the 
measure,  contended  that  if  Kenton's  case  should  become  a 
precedent,  it  could  not  be  a  dangerous  one,  because  it  was 
sui  generis,  and  without  a  parallel ;  but  that  if  there  were 
other  cases  of  equal  heroism  and  suffering,  they  would  form 
a  new  class,  as  meritorious  as  any  of  those,  which  had  been 
provided  for  by  law. 

During  the  discussion,  the  feelings  of  Gen.  Smith,  of  Bal- 
timore, became  warmly  enlisted.  He  made  a  brief  appeal 
to  the  humanity  and  justice  of  the  Senate,  in  favor  of  the 
bill,  in  which  he  declared  very  emphatically,  that  if  there 
was  not  a  law  for  the  relief  of  such  heroes  as  Kenton, 
there  ought  to  be  one ;  but  whether  or  not,  he  would  give 
him  a  pension.  The  bill  passed,  by  a  large  majority,  and 
as  it  referred  back  to  the  date  of  the  first  application,  and 
directed  the  pension  to  be  paid  from  that  time,  it  gave  him 
an  ample  support  for  the  remnant  of  his  life. 


CHAPTER   XXVI. 

Mr.  John  Reily.— Serves  in  the  Army  of  the  South  during  the  Revolution.— 
His  claim  to  the  gratitude  of  the  country. — Removes  to  the  North-western 
Territory. — View  of  the  Territory. — Pioneer  life. — Sketch  of  the  services  of 
Mr.  Reily  in  the  West. — His  uprightness  and  integrity. — Neglect  of  the 
pioneers  to  preserve  accurate  records. — The  ill  consequences. 

Mr.  John  Reily,  one  of  the  small  band  who  assembled 
under  Major  Stites,  in  the  fall  of  1788,  to  commence  the  set- 
tlement of  Columbia,  was  not  only  a  Western  pioneer,  but 
had  been  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  from  an  early 
period  after  its  commencement  to  its  final  close.  He  en- 
listed in  North  Carolina,  his  native  State,  and  was  after- 
wards ordered  to  join  the  army  of  the  South,  under  Gen. 
Green,  in  which  he  continued  to  serve  during  the  three  ex- 
hausting campaigns  which  ensued,  and  until  the  splendid 
victory  over  the  British  at  the  Eutaw  Springs  had  covered 
the  army  with  glory.  That  brilliant  affair,  in  which  Mr. 
Reily  was  distinguished  by  his  bravery  and  good  conduct, 
was  near  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  struggle,  and  so 
crippled  the  enemy  in  the  South  as  to  deter  them  from  any 
further  efforts  in  that  quarter. 

Every  body  who  knows  Mr.  Reily  personally,  must  have 
remarked  the  diffidence  with  which  he  refers  to  himself, 
and  with  what  reluctance  he  speaks  of  the  transactions  of 
his  life;  especially  those  which  were  attended  with  personal 
danger  and  privation,  or  were  productive  of  beneficial  re- 
sults to  the  community  or  to  individuals.  It  has  often  been 
remarked,  that  when  his  attention  has  been  called  by  a 
question,  or  otherwise,  to  some  interesting  event  of  his  life, 


470  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

for  the  purpose  of  eliciting  information,  he  has  manifested 
much  embarrassment,  resulting  from  an  unwillingness  to 
become  the  herald  of  his  own  fame;  hence  it  is,  in  part, 
that  his  friends  have  not  learned  more  of  the  interesting 
incidents  of  his  long  and  useful  life. 

Nothing  is  wanting  but  a  correct  biographical  sketch  of 
him  to  place  his  name  with  the  names  of  those  who  in  all 
time  to  come,  ought  to  be  remembered  as  patriots  and  de- 
voted friends  to  their  country.  Services  like  his,  which 
commenced  in  the  most  gloomy  period  of  the  Revolution, 
while  he  was  yet  a  minor,  and  were  performed  in  a  part  of 
the  country  in  which  the  army  was  exposed  to  incessant 
toil  and  suffering,  in  an  unhealthy  climate,  cannot  be  valued 
too  highly,  or  repeated  too  frequently.  It  is  now  but  very 
seldom  that  persons  are  met  with  who  were  engaged  in  the 
movements  and  events  of  the  great  struggle  which  made 
our  country  independent.  The  mass  of  them,  probably 
ninety-nine  in  a  hundred,  have  been  gathered  to  their 
fathers;  and  the  few  who  remain,  with  here  and  there  an 
exception,  are  compelled  by  the  debility  of  age  to  withdraw 
from  active  life.  There  are,  however,  some  yet  living  who 
at  the  Declaration  of  Independence  had  acquired  enough 
of  the  strength  of  manhood  to  grapple  with  the  enemy. 

That  Mr.  Reily  was  of  that  number,  appears  from  the 
records  of  the  War-office,  and  the  certificate  of  an  honora- 
ble discharge  under  the  hand  and  seal  of  Washington. — 
The  writer  was  not  one  of  the  adventurers  who  commenced 
the  occupancy  of  the  Miami  valley,  in  1788,  though  he  soon 
followed,  and  became  one  of  their  number  before  much 
progress  had  been  made  in  the  accomplishment  of  their 
great  object. 

When  Mr.  Reily  selected  the  North-western  Territory  as 
his  permanent  home,  it  wore  the  rich,  beautiful  garb  which 
nature  had  given  it,  neither  disturbed  nor  marred  by  the 
hand  of  art.  Its  great  fertility  was  seen  in  the  exuberance 
and  variety   of  its  productions.     Its  forests    and   natural 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  471 

meadows,  filled  with  game  of  the  finest  varieties,  Beemed 
to  have  no  limits.     Its  only  inhabitants  were  the  aborigin<  -. 

whose  ancestors  had  owned  and  occupied  it  during  a  long 
succession  of  ages.  This  they  learned  from  tradition.  Tin  v 
knew  that  the  country  was  their.-,  and  that  the  white  man 
was  an  intruder — nor  did  they  doubt  for  a  moment  their 
ability  to  maintain  their  rights.  Hence  their  intercom 
with  the  pioneers,  in  the  first  instance,  was  of  a  friendly 
character.  At  that  period  of  their  history  they  were  com- 
paratively a  moral  people — if  they  professed  friendship  they 
were  kind  and  faithful;  but  if  otherwise  they  were  ferocious 
and  cruel. 

At  first  it  was  not  difficult  to  win  their  confidence,  and, 
that  point  gained,  the  pioneers  felt  themselves  safe.  This 
security,  however,  continued  but  for  a  very  short  time .  The 
British  government,  which  was  then  withholding  from  the 
United  States  the  forts  of  Maumee,  Detroit,  and  Mackinaw, 
in  violation  of  the  treaty  of  1783,  saw  the  efforts  the  Ame- 
ricans were  making  to  settle  and  improve  the  North-west- 
ern Territory,  and  were  alarmed  at  the  power  and  influence 
which  they  would  obtain  over  the  Indians  by  the  completion 
of  that  plan.  They  saw,  also,  as  a  matter  of  course,  that 
it  would  soon  compel  them  to  relinquish  the  posts  and  re- 
tire within  their  own  territory,  and  the)*  determined,  if  prac- 
ticable, to  defeat  it. 

The  most  effectual  way  of  accomplishing  that  object  was 
to  poison  the  minds  of  the  Indians,  which  they  did  through 
the  instrumentality  of  their  agents,  by  telling  them  that  the 
people  of  the  United  States  were  their  natural  enemies — 
that  they  were  about  to  seize  their  lands  and  drive  them 
beyond  the  Lakes,  and  that  their  only  chance  for  safety 
was  to  crush  the  American  project  in  its  commencement. 
These  appeals  produced  the  desired  effect,  and  the  conse- 
quence was  that  when  the  pioneers  were  beginning  to  gain 
the  confidence  and  friendship  of  the  natives,  their  progress 


472  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

was  suddenly  checked  by  manifestations  of  hostility,  at  ev- 
ery point  where  settlements  had  been  commenced.  Thus 
were  their  hopes  dashed,  and  in  place  of  the  friendship 
they  anticipated,  they  were  admonished  that  they  had  to 
encounter  a  deadly  foe  in  every  savage  they  met.  Such 
being  the  fact,  the  great  disparity  of  numbers  between  the 
few  adventurers  who  first  crossed  the  Ohio,  and  the  hordes 
of  savages  who  then  occupied  the  forest  into  which  these 
adventurers  had  penetrated,  would  lead  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  pioneers  must  have  been  overwhelmed,  without 
even  the  possibility  of  an  escape. 

Such,  however,  was  not  the  fact.  Though  in  jeopardy 
every  hour,  and  expecting  to  meet  an  enemy  at  every  step, 
their  courage  did  not  desert  them,  nor  did  they  harbor  a 
thought  of  abandoning  their  purpose.  Being  hourly  in 
danger  and  always  prepared  to  meet  it,  habit  soon  made 
their  condition  familiar  and  robbed  fear  of  its  distress. 

This  concise  sketch  may  be  taken  as  an  epitome  of  the 
life  of  the  pioneer  from  his  first  attempt  to  settle  the  Terri- 
tory, in  1788,  till  the  treaty  of  General  Wayne,  in  1795. 
As  Mr.  Reily  was  actively  engaged  in  all  these  struggles 
and  dangers,  from  their  commencement  to  their  close,  he 
comprehends  them  well;  but  no  person  can  form  a  just 
conception  of  the  privations  and  dangers  of  a  pioneer,  wTho 
has  not  been  a  pioneer  himself. 

In  connection  with  these  transactions,  in  which  Mr.  Reily 
participated  so  largely,  it  may  be  added,  that  during  the 
first  eight  years  of  his  residence  in  the  Territory,  his  life 
and  habits  were  necessarily  those  of  a  soldier.  The  set- 
tlers were  so  constantly  exposed  to  the  enemy,  that  their 
safety  consisted  in  being  ready  at  a  moment's  warning  to 
resist  an  attack.  If  you  enquire  of  any  of  the  fewpion?ers 
who  survive,  they  will  tell  you  that  it  was  as  natural  for 
them  to  carry  their  rifles  to  the  corn-field  and  the  potato- 
patch,  as  their  hoes  or  other  instruments  of  husbandry;  and 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  473 

that  when  they  collected  on  the  Sabbath,  to  engage  in  the 
duties  of  religion,  whether  in  a  cabin  or  under  a  tree,  it 
was  with  Loaded  rifles  at  their  sides. 

It  is  impossible  for  those  who  have  recently  come  to  the 
western  country,  to  realize  the  true  situation  of  the  pion- 
eers. They  encountered  danger,  privation,  and  suffering, 
in  forms  not  easily  conceived  of,  and  more  appalling  than 
those  of  hunger  or  exposure  to  the  elements.  But  what- 
ever they  were,  Mr.  Reily  partook  of  them  all,  without  mur- 
mur or  complaint.  With  him  it  was  a  matter  of  calcula- 
tion. Before  he  crossed  the  mountains,  or  placed  his  foot 
beyond  the  limits  of  civilized  society,  he  counted  the  cost, 
and  made  up  his  mind  deliberately,  that  he  would  conform 
himself  to  the  requirements  of  his  new  condition,  be  they 
what  they  might.  He  redeemed  that  pledge,  and  in  the 
winter  of  1791,  which  was  the  midnight  of  the  protracted 
conflict,  he  manifested  no  despondency. 

The  defeat  of  General  St.  Clair,  and  the  ruin  of  his  army, 
on  the  4th  of  November  of  that  disastrous  year,  gave  the 
savages  unrestricted  access  to  the  American  settlements. 
The  consequences  of  such  an  exposure,  are  very  apparent. 
The  pioneers  were  assailed  by  an  enemy  outnumbering 
them  twenty  to  one,  and  were  dependent  for  safety  on  their 
ingenuity  and  bravery,  rather  than  on  any  thing  else ;  yet 
their  hearts  were  resolute  and  their  faces  cheerful — each 
encouraged  his  fellow,  and  all  adopted  the  motto,  "  nil  des- 
perandum." 

In  the  trials  and  sufferings  of  that  gallant  band,  Mr.  Reily 
had  a  full  share.  If  a  station  or  a  settlement  were  attacked, 
he  was  among  the  first  to  go  to  its  relief.  If  a  murder  or 
other  depredation  was  committed,  he  was  ready  to  take 
the  trail  and  pursue  the  enemy  without  loss  of  time. 
In  common  with  his  hardy  companions,  he  seemed  to  feel 
and  act  as  if  danger  were  the  natural  condition  of  man,  and 
his  duty  consisted  in  meeting  it  without  reluctance  and 
without  fear. 


474  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

True  bravery  seems  to  be  the  firm  exercise  of  resolution 
resulting  from  calm  reflection,  rather  than  any  distinguish- 
ing property  or  quality  of  mind,  inherent  in  some  men,  but 
not  in  others.  This  idea  is  countenanced  by  the  fact  that 
the  bravest  men  who  have  ever  lived — men  who  have  given 
evidence  time  and  again,  that  it  would  be  as  easy  for  them 
to  commit  suicide  as  to  refuse  an  act  of  duty  because  there 
was  danger  attending  it,  have  been  as  careful  to  avoid  ex- 
posure when  unnecessary,  as  they  have  to  seek  it  when  it 
became  a  duty  to  do  so.  It  is  also  corroborated  by  the  fact 
that  there  has  not  been  one  instance  of  cowardice  among 
the  pioneers — not  because  their  minds  or  nerves  were  or- 
ganised differently  from  those  of  other  men,  but  because  the 
circumstances,  in  which  they  had  voluntarily  placed  them- 
selves, were  such  as  identified  the  exercise  of  the  most 
heroic  courage  with  both  duty  and  safety.  Superficial  rea- 
soners  are  apt  to  confound  caution  and  prudence,  with 
timidity  and  fear,  though  there  is  not  the  least  similitude 
between  them. 

A  brave  man  retires  as  instinctively  from  danger  when 
exposure  is  useless,  as  he  seeks  it  when  it  becomes  a  duty : 
but  whether  these  reflections  be  philosophical  or  otherwise, 
it  must  be  conceded  that  there  were  no  cowards  among  the 
pioneers,  which  is  enough  for  the  present  purpose,  let  the 
fact  have  come  to  pass  how  it  may. 

Immediately  after  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  War, 
Mr.  Reily  resolved  to  establish  himself  in  Georgia,  and 
make  that  State  his  permanent  residence,  and  actually 
went  there  with  that  view.  Soon  after  his  arrival,  he  pur- 
chased a  warrant  for  one  thousand  acres  of  land,  lying  on 
the  frontier,  with  an  intention  of  settling  and  improving  it ; 
but  was  prevented  from  doing  so  by  the  hostility  of  the  In- 
dians, who  claimed  the  land,  and  denied  the  right  of  the 
State  to  dispose  of  it. 

After  remaining  in  that  unsettled  condition  for  some  time, 
he  became  convinced  that  there  was  no  prospect  of  a  speedy 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  475 

termination  of  the  difficulty  with  the  Indians,  and  being 
anxious  to  make  a  permanent  location  somewhere,  he  left 
his  land  and  moved  into  Tennessee.  From  thence  he  pro- 
ceeded to  Kentucky,  and,  after  a  short  residence  in  that  Stat", 
he  came  to  the  Miami  Purchase,  and  settled  at  Columbia. 
He  was  one  of  the  companions  of  Major  Stites  in  laying 
out  and  improving  the  village.  There  his  acquaintance 
commenced  with  the  venerable  Judge  Dunlavy,  who  W2M 
also  a  pioneer  eminently  distinguished  for  energy  and  zeal 
in  the  little  band  of  adventurers,  who  like  a  forlorn  hope, 
preceded  the  multitudes  destined  to  follow  in  their  train. 
A  friendship  then  began  between  him  and  Mr.  Reily,  which 
continued  to  increase  and  become  more  confidential  till  it 
was  terminated  by  the  death  of  the  Judge. 

In  all  the  different  offices  and  agencies  held  by  Mr.  Reily, 
he  performed  his  duty  with  great  fidelity  and  exactness. 
As  Clerk  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  North-wes- 
tern Territory,  which  he  held  from  the  commencement  of 
the  second  grade  of  government  in  1799  till  the  establish- 
ment of  the  State  Constitution,  his  devoted  attention  to  the 
business  of  the  House,  and  the  neat  correct  manner  in  which 
it  was  performed,  were  generally  noticed  and  spoken  of. 

In  the  Convention  which  formed  the  Constitution  of  our 
State,  though  he  spoke  but  little,  yet  the  confidence  placed 
in  his  judgment  gave  him  a  very  perceptible  influence. 

Having  been  appointed  Clerk  of  the  Common  Pleas  and 
the  Supreme  Court,  and  also  the  Recorder  of  Butler  county, 
at  its  first  organization  in  1803,  he  became  intimately  con- 
nected with  the  Commissioners  of  that  county,  and,  in  fact 
had  the  chief  management  of  their  finances,  which  were 
conducted  with  such  prudence,  that  it  did  not  become  neces- 
sary either  to  contract  an  onerous  debt,  or  to  subject  the 
people  to  unreasonable  taxes.  His  attention  to  the  affairs 
of  that  county  was  so  faithful  and  efficient,  that  nothing 
was  more  common  than  to  hear  him  called  the  "  Guardian 
of  the  people  of  Butler." 


476  BURNET'S  NOTES  ON  THE 

With  the  exception  of  Mr.  Hugh  Boyle,  of  Fairfield,  he 
held  the  office  of  Clerk  of  the  Courts,  for  a  longer  period 
than  any  other  individual  in  the  State.  The  neatness  with 
which  the  papers  in  his  office  were  endorsed  and  filed,  and 
the  order  and  care  with  which  they  were  kept,  was  the 
subject  of  general  remark.  But  it  is  needless  to  enlarge 
on  this  subject.  It  is  generally  known  that  through  life, 
his  duties  in  every  station  have  been  attended  to  with  a 
degree  of  punctuality  and  care  rarely  to  be  met  with. 

While  multitudes  who  hold  offices,  look  on  them  as  mere 
sources  of  profit,  he  has  considered  them  as  personal  trusts, 
conferred  for  the  public  good,  and  requiring  at  his  hands  a 
punctual  and  thorough  performance  of  the  duties  they  en- 
joined. His  veracity  and  integrity  have  never  been  ques- 
tioned—  they  are  proverbial,  and  the  prevailing  opinion 
is,  that  in  all  his  dealings  it  has  been  his  aim  to  do  justice, 
and,  in  cases  of  doubt  or  dispute,  to  render  more  than  he 
believed  to  be  due,  lest  he  might  ignorantly  render  less. 

The  Clerkship  of  the  Supreme  Court,  is  the  only  office 
recently  held  by  this  Revolutionary  soldier,  which  having 
been  voluntarily  resigned,  he  is  now,  and  has  been  for  a 
few  years,  living  in  retirement  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-six  years,  enjoying  as  ample  a  share  of  health  as 
could  be  expected  by  one,  whose  constitution  has  been  tried 
as  severely  as  his. 

If  the  reader  will  look  around  him,  he  will  find  but  very 
few  of  the  fellow  pioneers  of  Mr.  Reily  among  the  living. 
They  have  gone  to  their  long  homes,  soon  to  be  followed 
by  their  surviving  comrades.  How  few  of  the  multitudes 
who  are  daily  enjoying  the  fruits  of  his  toil  and  exposure, 
are  aware  of  what  he  has  done  and  suffered  to  procure 
them  !  A  consciousness  that  millions  now  inhabiting  the 
West,  enjoy  the  benefits  and  blessings  secured  by  him  and 
his  hardy  associates,  affords  him  great  pleasure;  though 
he  is  aware  that  they  know  him  not,  and  do  not  recognise 
the  existence  of  any  obligation. 


NORTH-WESTERN  TERRITORY.  477 

In  every  condition  in  which  he  lias  been  placed  in  life, 
it  has  been  his  ambition  to  perform  his  duty  promptly, 
faithfully,  and  fearlessly.  When  called  to  face  the  public 
enemy,  he  never  evaded  the  call,  or  left  others  to  incur  tin 
danger  which  it  was  his  duty  to  meet;  and  being  always 
at  his  post,  his  name  never  was  enrolled  on  a  list  of 
defaulters. 

The  thought  has  often  crossed  the  mind  of  the  writer, 
that  the  more  intelligent  portion  of  the  pioneers,  were  by 
far  too  negligent  in  preserving  written  memoranda  of  the 
transactions  which  took  place,  in  the  early  settlement  of 
the  Western  Territory.  Had  each  of  them  preserved  a 
sketch,  however  simple  and  concise,  of  the  events  of  which 
he  was  a  participant,  in  the  order  of  their  occurrence,  they 
would  have  furnished  the  material  of  one  of  the  most  inter- 
esting, and  thrilling  histories,  that  has  yet  been  published. 
This,  however,  was  not  done,  except  in  a  few  cases,  and 
in  a  limited  degree,  and  it  is  now  justly  apprehended,  that 
the  great  zeal  which  exists  to  remedy  this  omission,  and 
the  careless  manner  in  which  it  is  done,  by  receiving  state- 
ments freshly  reduced  to  writing,  as  coming  ex  cathedra, 
without  proper  caution,  will  be  the  means  of  imposing  on 
society  narratives  of  our  early  settlements,  which  will  not 
be  entitled  to  the  confidence  of  posterity. 

However  desirable  it  may  be,  and  it  is  admitted  to  be  so 
in  a  high  degree,  to  preserve  and  transmit  to  posterity  a 
faithful  account  of  the  pioneers  of  the  North-west,  and  of 
the  means  by  which  they  were  able  to  sustain  themselves, 
with  scarcely  any  thing  to  rely  on  but  their  courage  and 
perseverance,  yet  it  will  be  far  better  to  let  it  all  sink  into 
oblivion,  than  palm  on  the  world  as  truth,  such  fabulous 
stories  as  we  frequently  meet  with.  If  it  be  desirable  to 
preserve  truth  to  the  exclusion  of  fable,  these  statements 
must  be  received  with  great  caution,  and  rejected  promptly 
if  their  authenticity  be  not  attested  by  unquestionable 
proof.      Society   sustains   as  much,   and    probably   more, 


478  BURNET'S  NOTES. 

injury  from  falsehood  imposed  on  them  for  truth,  than  they 
do  from  the  suppression  or  loss  of  truth. 

In  all  periods  of  the  world,  with  but  few  exceptions,  men 
have  been  pleased  with  the  thought  that  a  knowledge  of 
their  useful  and  brilliant  achievements,  will  survive  them 
for  ages  after  they  are  gone.  Such  feelings  are  highly 
commendable,  as  they  are  strong  incentives  to  useful  and 
honorable  effort.  They  should  for  this  reason  be  encour- 
aged and  cherished  as  far  as  possible ;  and  to  accomplish 
this  more  effectually,  there  should  be  such  assurance  of  the 
authenticity  of  historical  narrative  as  will  secure  credence 
in  the  facts  it  may  contain;  for  who  can  feel  ambitious  to 
have  his  claims  to  public  respect  or  gratitude,  however  cor- 
rectly stated,  so  mingled  with  falsehood  and  fiction  as  to 
involve  the  publication  which  records  them  in  doubt  or 
ridicule?  Those  persons  therefore,  who  labor  faithfully, 
but  cautiously,  to  collect  authentic  historical  knowledge, 
entitle  themselves  to  the  gratitude  of  society.  It  should 
ever  be  borne  in  mind,  that  the  office  of  an  historian  is 
one  of  immense  responsibility;  that  it  always  tells  for 
good  or  for  evil,  and  that  he  will  be  held  responsible  for 
the  consequences  of  a  want  of  fidelity. 


APPENDIX. 


APPENDIX. 


A. 

Application  of  Judge  Symmes  to  Congress  for  a  grant  of  western  lands. 
(See  Journal  of  Congress,  Vol.  XII,  page  150.) 

"  To  His  Excellency,  the  President  of  Congress. 

The  petition  of  John  Cleves  Symmes,  of  New  Jersey,  showeth,  that  your 
petitioner,  encouraged  by  the  resolutions  of  Congress  of  the  23d  and  27th  of 
July  last,  stipulating  the  condition  of  a  transfer  of  federal  lands  on  the  Scioto 
and  the  Muskingum  rivers  unto  Winthrop  Sargent,  Manasseh  Cutler,  Esquires, 
and  their  associates,  of  New  England,  is  induced,  on  behalf  of  the  citizens  of 
the  United  States  westward  of  Connecticut,  who  also  wish  to  become  pur- 
chasers of  federal  lands,  to  pray  that  the  honorable  the  Congress  will  be  pleased 
to  direct  that  a  contract  be  made  by  the  honorable  the  Commissioners  of  the 
Treasury  Board,  with  your  petitioner  for  himself  and  his  associates,  in  all 
respects  similar,  in  form  and  matter,  to  the  said  grant  made  to  Messrs.  Sargent 
and  Cutler,  differing,  only  in  place  where,  and,  instead  of  two  townships  for 
the  use  of  an  University,  that  one  only  be  assigned  for  the  benefit  of  an 

Academy. 

That  by  such  transfer  to  your  petitioner  and  his  associates,  on  their  comply- 
ing with  the  terms  of  sale,  the  fee  may  pass  of  all  the  lands  lying  within  the 
following  limits,  to  wit:  Beginning  at  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Miami  river; 
thence  running  up  the  Ohio  to  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Miami  river;  thence 
up  the  main  stream  of  the  Little  Miami  river  to  the  place  where  a  due  west 
line  to  be  continued  from  the  western  termination  of  the  northern  boundary 
line  of  the  grant  to  Messrs.  Sargent,  Cutler  &  Co.  shall  intersect  said  Little 
Miami  river;  thence  due  west,  continuing  the  said  western  line  to  the  place 
31 


482  APPENDIX. 

where  the  said  line  shall  intersect  the  main  branch  or  stream  of  the  Great 
Miami  river;  thence  down  the  Great  Miami  to  the  place  of  beginning." 

(Signed)  JOHN  C.  SYMMES. 

New  York,  29^  August,  1787. 

"  Ordered,  That  the  above  petition  be  referred  to  the  Board  of  Treasury, 
to  take  order." 


B. 

Terms  of  sale  and  settlement  of  Miami  lands,  published  by  John  Cleves 
Symmes,  Esq.  at  Trenton,  Nov.  26th,  1787. 

To  the  respectable  Public. 

"  Whereas,  the  honorable  the  Congress,  by  their  act  of  the  3d  of  October, 
1787,  authorised  the  honorable  the  Commissioners  of  the  Treasury  Board  to 
enter  into  a  contract  with  the  subscriber  for  the  tract  of  land  hereafter  des- 
cribed, and  upon  the  following  conditions:  the  boundaries  of  the  land  are,  viz. 
Beginning  at  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Miami  river,  thence  running  up  the  Ohio 
to  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Miami  river,  thence  up  the  Little  Miami  to  the 
place  where  a  due  west  line  to  be  continued  from  the  western  termination  of 
the  northern  boundary  line  of  the  grant  to  Messrs.  Sargent,  Cutler,  and  Com- 
pany, shall  intersect  the  said  Little  Miami  river,  thence  due  west  continuing 
the  said  western  line  to  the  place  where  the  said  line  shall  intersect  the  main 
branch  or  stream  of  the  Great  Miami  river,  thence  down  the  Great  Miami  to 
the  place  of  beginning. 

The  conditions  are,  that  the  tract  shall  be  surveyed,  and  its  contents  ascer- 
tained by  the  geographer  or  some  other  officer  of  the  United  States,  who  shall 
plainly  mark  the  said  east  and  west  line,  and  shall  render  one  complete  plat 
thereof  to  the  Board  of  Treasury,  and  another  to  the  purchaser  or  purchasers. 
The  purchaser  or  purchasers,  within  seven  years  from  the  completion  of  this 
work,  (unless  the  frequency  of  Indian  irruptions  may  render  the  same  in  a 
measure  impracticable,)  shall  lay  off  the  whole  tract  at  their  own  expense  into 
townships,  and  fractional  parts  of  townships,  and  divide  the  same  imo  lots, 
according  to  the  land  ordinance  of  the  20th  of  May,  1785;  complete  returns 
whereof  shall  be  made  to  the  Treasury  Board.  The  lot  number  16  in  each 
township,  or  fractional  part  of  a  township,  to  be  given  perpetually  for  the  pur- 
poses contained  in  the  said  ordinance.     The  lot  number  29  in  each  township 


APPENDIX.  }s;< 

to  be  given  perpetually  for  the  purposes  of  religion.  The  lots  number,  8, 11, 
and  26,  in  each  township  or  fractional  part  of  a  township,  to  be  reserved  for 
the  future  disposition  of  Congress.  One  complete  township  to  be  given  per- 
petually for  the  purposes  of  an  Academy  or  College,  to  be  laid  off  by  the  pur- 
chaser or  purchasers,  as  nearly  opposite  to  the  mouth  of  Licking  river  as  an 
entire  township  may  be  found  eligible  in  point  of  soil  and  situation,  to  be 
applied  to  the  intended  object  by  the  Legislature  of  the  State. 

The  price  to  be  one  dollar  per  acre  for  the  contents  of  the  said  tract,  except- 
ing the  reservations  and  gifts  aforesaid,  payable  in  specie,  loan  office  certifi- 
cates reduced  to  specie  value,  or  certificates  of  liquidated  debts  of  the  United 
States,  subject  to  a  reduction  by  an  allowance  for  bad  lands,  and  all  incidental 
charges  and  circumstances  whatsoever,  one-third  of  a  dollar  per  acre;  and  in 
making  payment,  the  principal  only  of  the  said  certificates  shall  be  admitted. 
And  the  Board  of  Treasury,  for  such  interest  as  may  be  due  on  the  certificates 
rendered  in  payment  as  aforesaid,  prior  to  the  1st  of  January,  1786,  shall  issue 
indents  for  interest  to  the  possessors,  which  shall  be  receivable  in  payment  as 
other  indents  for  interest  of  the  existing  requisitions  of  Congress;  and  for  such 
interest  as  may  be  due  on  the  said  certificates,  between  that  period  and  the 
period  of  payment,  the  said  Board  shall  issue  indents,  the  payment  of  which  to 
be  provided  for  in  future  requisitions,  or  otherwise. 

Such  of  the  purchasers  as  may  possess  rights  for  bounties  of  land  to  the  late 
continental  army,  to  be  permitted  to  render  the  same  in  discharge  of  the  con- 
tract, acre  for  acre,  provided  that  the  aggregate  of  such  rights  shall  not  exceed 
one-seventh  part  of  the  land  to  be  paid  for;  and  provided  also,  that  there  shall 
be  no  future  claim  against  the  United  States  on  account  of  the  said  rights. 

Two  hundred  thousand  dollars  of  the  purchase  money  to  be  paid  down  upon 
closing  the  contract,  and  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  more  within  one 
month  after  the  delivery  of  the  return  or  survey  of  the  tract,  to  be  made  by 
the  Geographer  or  other  officer  as  aforesaid.  The  residue  of  the  money  to  be 
paid  by  the  purchaser  or  purchasers,  in  six  equal  half-yearly  payments,  to  be 
computed  from  the  time  when  the  second  payment  becomes  due,  together 
with  the  interest  thereon  from  the  date  of  the  second  payment. 

When  the  second  payment  is  made,  the  purchasers  shall  receive  a  deed  for 
six  hundred  thousand  acres,  exclusive  of  the  reserved  and  given  lands,  the  sur- 
vey whereof  to  begin  at  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Miami  at  one  end,  and  at  the 
intersection  of  the  northern  boundary  line  with  the  Great  Miami  at  the  other 
end,  and  extending  eastwardly  from  the  Great  Miami  on  a  meridian  line  to 
be  drawn  from  north  to  south  lengthways  of  the  tract,  until  six  hundred 
thousand  acres  exclusive  of  the  given  and  reserved  lots  are  included  between 


484  APPENDIX. 

the  Great  Miami  and  such  north  and  south  line.  Further  proportional  grants 
shall  be  made  to  the  purchasers,  from  time  to  time,  as  the  subsequent  pay- 
ments are  discharged,  always  drawing  a  line  from  north  to  south  parallel  with 
the  first  line,  from  end  to  end  of  the  tract,  until  the  whole  of  the  land  pur- 
chased be  granted  by  deed  to  the  purchasers,  their  heirs  and  assigns  forever. 

The  purchaser  or  purchasers  on  the  payment  of  the  first  two  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars,  shall  have  a  right  to  enter  and  occupy  a  portion  of  the  land  not 
exceeding  three  hundred  thousand  acres,  exclusive  of  the  given  and  reserved 
township  and  lots,  which  privilege  shall  be  enlarged  from  time  to  time,  as  fu- 
ture payments  may  be  made  by  the  purchasers.     Thus  far  the  agreement. 

The  public,  by  the  foregoing  being  made  acquainted  with  the  nature  of  the 
contract  entered  into  between  the  honorable  the  Commissioners  of  the  Trea- 
sury Board,  and  the  subscriber,  for  himself  and  associates,  the  subscriber  begs 
leave  to  communicate  to  such  gentlemen  as  are  desirous  of  becoming  his  asso- 
ciates, the  scheme  adopted  for  sale  and  settlement,  which  shall  be  considered 
as  fundamental  thereto,  by  every  purchaser  and  settler. 

The  first  necessary  measure  is  to  raise  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  in 
liquidated  certificates  in  order  to  discharge  the  first  payment,  which  must  be 
made  previous  to  any  entry  or  settlement  on  the  land. 

For  this  purpose,  land  warrants  will  be  issued  by  the  subscriber,  or  other 
person  appointed,  for  any  number  of  acres  not  less  than  one  hundred  and 
sixty,  or  a  quarter  part  of  a  section,  and  always  making  the  warrant  for  a 
township,  section,  or  quarter  part  of  a  section,  authorising  the  person  pur- 
chasing the  same,  his  heirs  or  assigns,  to  elect  and  choose,  in  his  own  person, 
or  by  his  or  their  agents,  such  township,  or  lot,  or  quarter  of  a  lot,  as  may  be 
most  agreeable  to  the  holder  of  the  warrant;  provided  the  same  township,  or 
lot,  or  quarter  of  a  lot  be  not  previously  located  and  entered  on  record  by  a 
prior  applicant. 

A  map,  as  accurate  as  can  be  drawn  before  an  actual  survey  is  made,  may 
be  seen  with  the  subscriber,  on  which  any  person  may  make  their  election  of 
a  township,  lot,  or  quarter  of  a  lot,  which  shall  be  attended  to,  as  far  as  may 
be  possible,  after  the  tract  is  surveyed  into  townships  and  sections,  and  the 
elected  townships,  lots,  or  quarters  of  lots,  shall  be  noted  in  the  true  map  of 
the  premises  as  soon  as  the  same  can  be  made.  When  the  survey  thereof  is 
accomplished,  a  plat  or  map  of  the  land  paid  for  at  the  Treasury  Boa/d,  wiJI 
lie  before  the  Register  at  his  office,  to  be  kept  on  the  ground,  in  which  every 
township  or  fractional  part  of  a  township,  will  be  fairly  laid  down  and  num- 
bered; and  every  township,  lot,  or  quarter  of  a  lot,  when  applied  for  at  the 
Register's  office,  and  nowhere  else,  after  actual  survey,  shall  be  immediately 


APPENDIX.  .-is.-) 

recorded,  as  sold  to  the  person  or  persons  to  whom  the  warrant  belongs,  which 
shall  be  produced  to  cover  the  sale.  And  the  township,  lot,  or  quarter  of  a 
lot,  so  elected,  shall  be  marked  on  the  map  to  prevent  any  mi-tub-  in  a  subse- 
quent location;  provided  always,  that  no  section  be  divided  \vh>  n  the  warrant 
contains  a  sufficient  number  of  acres  to  cover  the  whole  section. 

Two-thirds  of  a  dollar  per  acre,  in  liquidated  certificates,  exclusive  of  the 
interest  due  on  such  certificates,  to  be  paid  by  the  purchaser  on  the  receipt  of 
a  land  warrant;  and  for  the  interest  due  on  all  certificates,  indents  are  to  issue 
at  the  Treasury  Board,  which  shall  be  returned  by  the  subscriber  to  the  right 
owners  of  such  certificates :  regular  accounts  thereof  shall  be  kept.  But  the 
subscriber  recommends,  as  the  better  way,  that  each  holder  of  certificates 
should  apply  to  the  loan  officer  of  the  State  in  which  he  lives,  and  first  draw 
up  his  interest  fully,  in  indents  or  facilities  before  he  presents  them  in  pay- 
ment for  the  land  warrant;  yet,  if  this  be  inconvenient,  the  subscriber  will  see 
that  justice  is  done  touching  the  interest. 

After  the  1st  day  of  May  next,  the  price  of  the  land  will  be  one  dollar  per 
acre,  and  after  the  1st  day  of  November  next,  the  price  will  rise  still  higher,  if 
the  country  is  settled  as  fast  as  is  expected.  The  certificates  raised  by  this 
augmentation  in  the  price,  shall  be  applied  towards  the  making  of  roads  and 
bridges  in  the  Purchase. 

One  penny  proclamation,  or  the  ninetieth  of  a  dollar,  per  acre,  in  specie  of 
bills  of  credit  of  the  States  of  New  York,  New  Jersey,  or  Pennsylvania,  must 
be  paid  by  the  purchaser  at  the  time  of  purchasing  the  land  warrant.  This  fee 
of  one  penny  per  acre  is  to  defray  the  expense  of  sun-eying  the  country  into 
townships  and  lots,  agreeably  to  the  land  ordinance.  And  one  farthing  proc- 
lamation, or  the  three  hundred  and  sixtieth  part  of  a  dollar,  per  acre,  in  specie 
or  paper  money  aforesaid,  to  be  paid  by  the  purchaser  to  defray  the  expense  of 
printing  the  land  warrants,  purchasing  proper  books  for  record,  accommoda- 
ting and  paying  the  Register  for  his  services  in  attending  to  the  recording  of 
entries,  and  other  incidental  charges  which  will  necessarily  accrue. 

When  a  land  warrant  shall  be  for  one  quarter  of  a  lot,  or  one  hundred  and 
sixty  acres,  the  same  shall  always  be  taken  and  located  at  one  corner  of  a  sec- 
tion in  a  square  with  equal  lines,  and  in  no  case  shall  the  square  of  half  a  mile 
each  way  be  departed  from,  except  in  those  fractional  parts  of  sections  which 
may  be  rendered  incomplete  by  the  outside  lines  or  boundaries  of  the  Purchase; 
and  the  entry  shall  be  made  on  the  record  accordingly,  setting  forth  which 
corner  or  quarter  part  of  the  section  is  elected,  and  that  quarter  of  the  section 
shall  be  immediately  stained  on  the  map  to  denote  its  being  located. 

The  subscriber  is  very  sensible  that  an  inconvenience  will  arise  from  the 


486  APPENDIX. 

circumstance  of  adhering  strictly  to  certain  numbers  of  acres  in  a  land  war- 
rant, as  few  men  can  make  the  amount  of  their  certificates  tally  exactly  with 
certain  given  numbers  of  acres  contained  in  a  township,  lot,  or  a  quarter  of  a 
lot;  and  yet  the  measure  is  absolutely  necessary,  for  if  persons  were  to  pur- 
chase any  number  of  acres  which  was  most  convenient  to  them,  and  locate  the 
same  at  their  pleasure,  it  must  follow  that  there  would  be  left  unlocated  a 
number  of  small  pieces  and  strips  of  land  throughout  the  whole  purchase, 
which  would  infallibly  mar  the  design.  In  order,  therefore,  to  remedy  this 
inconvenience  as  far  as  may  be,  and  provide  a  kind  of  change,  a  certificate 
of  the  surplus  amount  shall  be  given  to  the  purchaser,  certifying  so  much 
land  paid  for  over  the  contents  of  the  warrant  delivered,  which  certificate  or 
due  bill  shall  be  transferrable,  and  shall  be  received  in  payment,  or  credited 
when  presented  in  the  purchase  of  any  subsequent  warrant.  A  number  of 
persons,  however,  may  throw  all  their  certificates  together,  and  take  a  whole 
township,  which  they  can  divide  among  themselves  according  as  each  con- 
tributes. 

After  location  and  entry  is  made  on  the  record,  the  Register  shall,  as  soon 
as  the  hurry  of  entering  is  over,  proceed  to  make  out  a  patent  under  his  hand 
and  a  special  seal  for  this  purpose  provided,  to  the  purchaser  for  the  township, 
lot,  or  quarter  of  a  lot  so  located  and  entered,  which  shall  be  evidence  of  a 
transfer  of  the  fee  of  such  township,  lot,  or  quarter  of  a  lot  to  the  patentee, 
his  heirs  or  assigns,  forever;  for  which  service  the  Register  shall  receive  one- 
third  of  a  dollar  in  specie  for  each  deed  including  but  one  lot  or  quarter  part  of 
a  lot,  and  the  sixteenth  of  a  dollar  more  for  every  additional  lot  and  lots,  or 
quarter  part  of  a  lot,  over  the  first  six  hundred  and  forty  acres  which  shall  be 
included  in  the  patent  or  deed. 

Whereas,  engrossing  large  tracts  of  land  whereon  no  families  are  settled  for 
a  long  space  of  time,  has  been  found  very  prejudicial  to  the  population  of  all 
new  countries — in  order  to  avoid  this  inconvenience,  which  has  been  greatly 
detrimental  to  the  settlement  of  Kentucky,  it  is  hereby  provided  that  every 
locator  shall  have  two  years  from  the  time  of  entering  his  location  to  fix  or 
place  himself  or  some  other  person  or  persons  on  the  ground  or  in  the  coun- 
try at  some  station  of  defence,  and  begin  an  improvement  on  every  section  or 
quarter  of  a  section  which  he  may  have  located,  if  this  may  be  done  with 
safety;  but  if  the  locator  shall  neglect,  for  two  years  after  location  enteied,  to 
make  a  settlement  on  every  section  or  quarter  of  a  section  which  he  may  have 
located,  or  to  settle  some  other  person  or  persons  thereon,  or  in  some  station, 
who  shall  continue  to  improve  the  same  or  live  in  such  station  for  seven 
years,  unless  succeeded  by  others  who  shall  supply  their  place,  provided  they 


APPENDIX. 


is? 


are  not  disturbed  by  the  Indians  for  tbat  period — in  such  case,  one-sixth  part 
of  every  such  neglected  section  or  quarter  part  of  a  section,  to  be  taken  off  in 
a  square  at  the  nortb-east  corner,  shall  be  deemed  forfeited,  and  shall  revert  to 
the  Register  for  the  time  being,  in  trust,  so  far  as  to  authorise  him  to  grant  the 
same  gratis  to  any  volunteer  settler  who  shall  first  make  application  to  the 
Register  therefor,  previous  to  any  settlement  being  made  thereon  by  the  pro- 
prietor or  locator,  or  some  person  for  him;  upon  condition,  however,  that  such 
volunteer  settler  proceed  immediately  to  make  an  improvement,  and  shall  con- 
tinue the  settlement  thereon,  or  live  in  some  station  in  the  country  for  defence, 
as  is  required  of  the  proprietor  or  first  locater.  But  in  all  such  forfeitures,  the 
forfeited  sixth  part  shall  be  invariably  taken  at  the  north-east  corner  of  the  lot 
when  entire,  or  quarter  of  a  lot,  so  neglected  to  be  settled,  and  shall  be  surveyed 
off  in  a  regular  square,  all  the  lines  being  equal,  the  expense  whereof  shall  be 
paid  by  the  volunteer  settler,  who  shall  have  the  same  recorded  to  him,  the 
Register  taking  the  ground  on  which  such  volunteer  settler  derives  his  right, 
and  after  seven  years  occupancy  on  the  lot,  or  residence  in  some  station  of 
defence,  making  a  reasonable  abatement  of  time  within  that  period  if  the  Indians 
should  prove  troublesome,  the  Register  shall  proceed  to  make  out  a  deed  for 
such  forfeited  sixth  part,  always  to  be  taken  at  the  north-east  corner,  to  such 
volunteer  settler,  whereby  the  fee  of  the  land  so  forfeited  shall  pass  to  him, 
his  heirs,  or  assigns,  for  ever;  for  which  the  Register  shall  receive  the  same 
fees  as  for  other  deeds. 

Little  need  be  said  to  evince  the  propriety  and  justice  of  this  measure,  as  it 
is  reasonable  that  all  who  become  purchasers  should  in  some  way  contribute 
to  the  defence  of  the  country  by  their  own  personal  service,  or  by  some  other 
person  for  them. 

The  difficulty  of  opening  and  making  roads  in  the  country  is  another  heavy 
duty  to  which  those  purchasers  who  do  not  go  there  ought  to  contribute, 
thereby  rendering  the  residue  of  their  land  more  valuable.  The  settlement  of 
one  family  on  the  forfeited  sixth  part  will  really  make  the  remaining  five-sixths 
of  the  section  or  quarter  section  worth  more  than  the  whole  would  be  in  a  wil- 
derness. Perhaps  some  may  think  that  two  years  is  too  short  a  time  for 
making  the  settlement  required;  but  if  gentlemen  will  reflect  on  the  danger 
from  the  Indians  attending  the  first  settlers,  the  great  difficulties  which  those 
meet  who  first  occupy  a  desert,  the  extent  of  the  federal  territory  open  in 
every  quarter  to  emigrants,  and  that  the  value  of  land  depends  almost  entirely 
on  the  number  of  its  inhabitants,  the  subscriber  believes  that  two  years  will 
be  thought  time  sufficient  for  the  purpose.  The  subscriber,  having  been  in 
the  Western  Country,  is  so  fully  persuaded  of  the  great  benefit  that  will  re- 


488  APPENDIX. 

suit  from  this  regulation,  that  he  most  cheerfully  submits  to  it  himself,  and 
perhaps  few  will  be  more  affected  thereby. 

Officers  and  soldiers  of  the  late  American  army  who  wish  to  have  their 
bounty  lands  in  this  grant,  will  please  to  send  their  names,  regiment,  rank,  and 
of  what  line,  to  Gen.  Dayton,  at  Elizabethtown,  or  to  one  of  the  gentlemen 
hereafter  appointed  to  receive  the  applications  of  purchasers. 

Ministers  of  the  gospel,  of  every  denomination  of  Christians,  are  cordially 
invited  into  the  country,  to  enjoy  the  use  of  the  lot  number  29,  in  each  town- 
ship, in  such  distribution  as  shall  be  agreeable  to  the  parishioners. 

Schoolmasters  who  will  settle  on  these  lands,  and  are  capable  of  discharging 
with  propriety  the  duties  of  such  instructors,  shall  enjoy  the  free  use  and  bene- 
fit of  the  given  lot  number  16,  in  some  one  of  the  townships,  so  long  as  they 
shall  severally  pursue  the  business  of  educating  the  children  of  the  parish, 
on  such  terms  as  shall  be  agreed  between  the  master  and  his  employers. 

All  certificates  and  monies  paid  shall  be  returned,  free  of  cost,  to  the  pur- 
chaser of  the  warrant,  in  case  of  failure  in  raising  the  sum  sufficient  for  the 
first  payment  to  the  Treasury  Board;  but  on  return  of  the  certificates,  the 
land  warrants  must  also  be  returned  to  the  subscriber,  or  to  those  gentlemen 
from  whom  they  may  hereafter  be  purchased. 

The  subscriber  hopes  that  the  respectable  public  will  not  think  it  unreason- 
able in  him,  when  he  informs  them  that  the  only  privilege  which  he  reserves 
for  himself,  as  a  small  reward  for  his  trouble  in  this  business,  is  the  exclusive 
right  of  electing  or  locating  that  entire  township  which  will  be  lowest  down  in 
the  point  of  land  formed  by  the  Ohio  and  Great  Miami  rivers,  and  those  three 
fractional  parts  of  townships  which  may  lie  north,  west,  and  south,  between 
such  entire  township  and  the  waters  of  the  Ohio  and  Great  Miami.  This 
point  of  land  the  subscriber  intends  paying  for  himself,  and  thereon  to  lay  out 
a  handsome  town-plat,  with  eligible  streets,  and  lots  of  sixty  feet  wide  in  front 
and  rear,  and  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  deep,  every  other  lot  of  which  shall 
be  given  freely  to  any  person  who  shall  first  apply  for  the  same,  lot  No.  1  be- 
ing retained,  and  lot  No.  2,  given  away,  and  thus  alternately  throughout  the 
town — upon  condition  always,  that  the  person  so  applying  for,  and  accepting 
of,  a  given  lot  or  lots,  shall,  without  evasion,  build  a  house  or  cabin,  on  each 
lot  so  given,  within  two  years  after  the  date  of  the  first  payment  made  to  the 
Treasury  Board,  and  occupy  the  same  by  keeping  some  family  therein,  for  the 
first  three  years  after  building.  Every  person  who  will  accept  of  a  town  lot, 
as  aforesaid,  shall  have  the  privilege  of  cutting,  on  the  subscriber's  adjacent 
land,  as  much  timber  for  building  as  such  donee  shall  need,  during  the  terra 
of  three  years  from  the  time  when  he  first  begins  to  build  on  his  lot. 


APPENDIX.  js'.i 

The  subscriber  begs  leave  to  add,  for  tin-  information  of  those  who  are  un- 
acquainted with  the  country,  that  from  his  own  view  of  this  hind,  bordering 
on  the  river  Ohio,  and  the  unanimous  report  of  all  those  who  have  traveled 
over  the  tract  in  almost  every  direction,  it  is  supposed  to  be  equal  to  any  part 
of  the  federal  territory,  in  point  of  quality  of  soil,  and  <xcellence  of  climate,  it 
lying  in  the  latitude  of  about  thirty-eight  degrees  north,  where  tin-  winters 
are  moderate  and  no  extreme  heatfl  in  rammer.  Its  situation  is  such  as  to 
command  the  navigation  of  several  fine  rivers,  us  may  be  seen  by  the  maps  of 
that  country;  boats  are  frequently  passing  by  this  land  as  they  ply  up  and 
down  the  Ohio.  There  are  no  mountains  in  the  tract,  and,  excepting  a  few 
hills,  the  country  is  generally  level,  and  free  from  stone  on  the  surface  of  the 
earth;  but  there  are  plenty  of  stone  quarries  for  building.  It  is  said  to  be  well 
watered  with  springs  and  rivulets,  and  several  fine  mill  streams  falling  from 
the  dividing  ridge  into  the  two  Miamies,  which  lie  about  thirty  miles  apart 
and  are  both  supposed  to  be  navigable  higher  up  in  the  country  than  the 
northern  extent  of  this  purchase,  so  that  the  interior  farms  will  have  naviga- 
tion in  the  boating  seasons,  within  fifteen  or  eighteen  miles  at  farthest.  Salt} 
in  any  quantity,  may  be  had  by  water  within  a  moderate  distance,  at  the  salt 
works  on  the  banks  of  the  Licking  river,  which  empties  itself  from  the  Ken- 
tucky side  into  the  Ohio,  between  the  two  Miami  rivers.  Provisions  for  the 
first  emigrants  may  be  had  very  cheap  and  good,  by  water,  from  the  Pitts- 
burgh, Redstone,  and  Wheeling  settlements,  or  from  the  district  of  Kentucky 
which  lies  opposite  to  this  Purchase,  on  the  south-east  side  of  the  Ohio.  The 
distance  from  Fort  Pitt  is  about  five  hundred  miles  down  a  gentle  river,  navi- 
gable for  boats  of  one  hundred  tons  to  the  Mississippi,  and  down  the  Missis- 
sippi to  the  sea.  In  the  district  of  Kentucky,  which  is  separated  from  this 
Purchase  by  the  river  Ohio,  about  half  a  mile  wide,  the  average  price  of  land 
is  half  a  dollar  per  acre,  in  specie,  though  a  large  proportion  could  not  be 
bought  under  three  hard  dollars  per  acre;  eight  and  ten  shillings  per  acre  are 
frequently  given.  For  the  quantity,  a  larger  proportion  of  the  lands  on  the 
Miamies,  are  supposed  to  be  of  the  first  quality,  and  the  whole  equally  good, 
compared  generally  with  those  of  Kentucky.  The  titles  to  the  Miami  lands 
will  be  clear  and  certain,  and  no  possible  doubt  can  arise.  Whereas,  on  the 
Kentucky  side,  (military  rights  excepted)  the  titles  of  land  are  not  easily  as- 
certained, frequently  very  doubtful,  and  too  often  not  well  founded. 

It  is  expected  that  a  considerable  settlement  will  be  begun  on  the  land  next 
spring,  if  the  first  payment  to  the  Treasury  Board  can  be  made  by  that  time. 

The  honorable  the  Secretary  at  War,  General   Knox,  having  assured  the 
subscriber  of  his  friendly  disposition  to  support  the  settlers  against  the  In- 

32 


490  APPENDIX 

dians,  by  replacing  a  garrison  of  federal  troops  in  the  fort  which  is  still  re- 
maining on  the  land,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Miami,  must  greatly  facilitate 
the  settlement,  and  in  some  measure  render  safety  to  the  first  adventurers. 

A  system  of  good  government  for  that  country  is  already  formed  by  the  hon- 
orable the  Congress,  and  the  principal  officers  of  the  government  are  appointed. 
His  excellency,  Governor  St.  Clair,  and  the  honorable,  the  Judges  of  the  Su- 
preme Court,  go  out  early  next  spring,  and  they  will  carry  with  them  whole- 
some laws,  and  the  wisest  regulations  for  promoting  emigration  to  that  coun- 
try, protecting  and  rendering  happy  all  those  who  become  peaceable  settlers 

therein. 

The  subscriber  intends  going  out  himself,  and  shall  make  it  his  study  to  en- 
courage and  superintend  the  settlement  of  this  Purchase,  by  causing  the  ut- 
most attention  to  be  paid  to  every  application,  and  aiding  as  far  as  may  be  in 
his  power,  all  those  who  become  either  purchasers  or  settlers." 

Signed  at  Trenton,  the  26th  day  of  November,  A.  D.  1787. 

JOHN  CLEVES  SYMMES. 


c. 

Extract  from  the  articles  of  agreement,  executed  in  October,  1788,  between 
the  Board  of  Treasury  of  the  United  States,  and  John  C.  Symmes,  and  his 
associates,  showing  that  the  quantity  of  land  first  applied  for  by  the  Judge, 
which  was  estimated  at  two  millions  of  acres,  was  reduced  to  one  million,  and 
the  right  to  a  College  township  thereby  lost,  and  consequently  not  included 
in  the  contract. 

"  This  Indenture  of  three  parts,  made  the  15th  day  of  October,  in  the  year 
of  our  Lord,  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  eighty-eight,  between  Samuel 
Osgood,  Walter  Livingston,  and  Arthur  Lee,  Esquires,  Commissioners  of  the 
Board  of  Treasury  of  the  United  States  of  America,  acting  by  and  under  the 
authority  of  the  honorable  the  Congress  of  the  said  States,  of  the  first  part,  the 
honorable  Jonathan  Dayton,  and  Daniel  Marsh,  of  the  State  of  New  Jersey, 
Esquires,  of  the  second  part,  and  the  honorable  John  Cleves  Symmes.  of  the 
same  State,  Esquire,  of  the  third: — Whereas,  the  United  States  in  Congress 
assembled,  in  and  by  their  several  resolutions  and  votes  of  the  23d  and  27th 
days  of  July,  and  the  23d  day  of  October,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thou- 
sand seven  hundred  and  eighty-seven,  or  some  of  them,  did  authorise  and 


APPENDIX.  4Ul 

empower  the  Board  of  Treasury  aforesaid  to  contract  with  any  person  or  per- 
sons for  grants  of  any  tracts  of  land  in  the  said  n  solutions  mentioned,  upon 
such  terms  and  conditions,  for  such  considerations,  under  such  reservations 
and  with  such  exceptions,  as  in  the  said  resolutions  and  the  papers  therein  re- 
ferred to,  are  specified  and  expressed.  And  whereas,  by  virtue  of  the  said 
resolutions  and  votes,  or  some  of  them,  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part  have 
contracted  and  agreed  with  the  said  partie,  of  the  second  part,  in  behalf  of  the 
said  John  Cleves  Symmes,  and  his  associates,  for  the  grant  of  a  tract  of  land, 
hereinafter  mentioned,  that  is  to  say:  all  that  certain  tract  or  parcel  of  land, 
situate,  lying,  and  being  in  the  Western  country,  adjoining  to  the  river  Ohio, 
beginning  on  the  bank  of  the  same  river,  at  a  spot  exactly  twenty  miles  dis- 
tant, along  the  several  courses  of  the  same,  from  the  place  where  the  great 
river  Miami  empties  itself  into  the  said  river  Ohio;  from  thence,  extending 
down  the  said  river  Ohio,  along  the  several  courses  thereof,  to  the  Great  Miami 
river;  thence  up  the  said  river  Miami,  along  the  several  courses  thereof,  to  a 
place  from  whence  a  line  drawn  due  east,  will  intersect  a  line  drawn  from  the 
place  of  beginning  aforesaid,  parallel  with  the  general  course  of  the  Great  Mi- 
ami river,  so  as  to  include  one  million  of  acres  within  those  lines  and  the  said 
rivers;  and  from  that  place  upon  the  said  great  river  Miami,  extending  along 
such  lines  to  the  place  of  beginning,  containing,  as  aforesaid,  one  million  of 
acres,"  etc. 


D. 

Extract  from  the  patent  of  John  C.  Symmes,  and  his  associates,  executed  in 
September,  1794. 

"It  is  hereby  declared,  that  one  complete  township  or  tract  of  land,  of  six  miles 
square,  to  be  located,  with  the  approbation  of  the  Governor,  for  the  time  being, 
of  the  Territory  north-west  of  the  river  Ohio,  and  in  the  manner,  and  within 
the  term  of  five  years  aforesaid,  as  nearly  as  may  be,  in  the  centre  of  the  tract 
of  land  herein  before  granted,  hath  been,  and  is  granted,  and  shall  be  holden, 
in  trust,  to  and  for  the  sole  and  exclusive  intent  and  purpose,  of  erecting  and 
establishing  therein,  an  Academy  and  other  public  schools,  and  seminaries  of 
learning;  and  endowing  and  supporting  the  same,  and  to  and  for,  no  other 
use,  intent  or  purpose  whatever." 


492  APPENDIX. 

E,  1. 

In  the  address  of  Governor  St.  Clair  to  the  Territorial  Legislature,  on  the 
25th  of  September,  1799,  (see  Journal  of  the  House,  page  9,)  he  stated  to  them 
officially,  that  Mr.  Symmes  and  his  associates,  had  failed  to  set  apart  a  town- 
ship for  the  use  of  a  college,  as  they  were  bound  to  do;  but  that  "  an  attempt 
to  do  something  towards,  or  in  lieu  of  it,  was  made  by  Judge  Symmes,  on  the 
24th  of  July,  1798,  when  he  made  an  offer  in  writing,  of  the  second  town- 
ship, in  the  second  fractional  range  of  townships,  in  the  before  mentioned 
tract  of  land;  and  requested  that  it  might  be  approved  of,  and  proclaimed  as 
the  proper  township,  for  the  purpose  of  endowing  an  Academy.  It  appeared 
to  me  improper  that  that  township  should  be  approved,  because  it  in  no  way 
answered  the  description  of  the  one,  granted  in  trust  by  his  patent;  and  be- 
cause I  had  certain  information,  that  claims  lay  to  a  considerable  part  of  it, 
and  that  a  suit  in  the  Chancery  Court  of  the  United  States,  to  compel  a  con- 
veyance, was  actually  depending." 


E,  2. 

In  a  subsequent  communication,  from  the  Governor  to  the  Legislature,  on 
the  21st  of  October,  during  the  same  session,  (see  Journal  of  the  Legislative 
Council,  page  32,)  he  laid  before  them  a  copy  of  a  letter,  addressed  by  him  to 
John  C.  Symmes,  on  the  subject  of  the  College  township,  and  particularly  as 
to  the  offer  he  has  made,  of  the  second  township,  of  the  second  fractional 
range  of  townships,  in  the  Miami  Purchase,  for  the  use  of  a  College,  from 
which  the  following  is  an  extract: 

u  I  request  you,  therefore,  sir,  to  take  notice,  that  for  the  reasons  above 
mentioned  to  wit:  that  the  title,  to  a  part  of  it,  at  least,  is  in  dispute,  that  it 
does  not  answer  to  the  situation,  called  for  in  the  patent,  and  that  according 
to  information,  it  is  of  very  mean  quality,  which,  if  true,  would  defeat  the 
purpose  for  which  it  was  granted:  the  location  of  the  second  township,  in  the 
second  fractional  range  of  townships,  for  the  purpose  of  creating  therein  an 
Academy,  and  other  schools,  and  for  endowing  and  supporting  the  same,  is  not 
approved,  and  cannot  by  me,  be  declared  to  bo  the  lot,  granted  to  you,  in  trust, 
for  those  purposes;  and  I  must  request  you,  sir,  as  soon  as  may  be,  to  point 
out  another  township,  free  from  those  objections." 


APPENDIX.  493 

E,  3. 

After  the  township  thus  offered,  had  been  rejected,  first,  by  the  Governor  of 
the  Territory,  then  by  the  Territorial  Legislature,  and  rabeeqnently  by  th<- 
Legislature  of  the  State  of  Ohio,  the  Judge  offered  it  a  fourth  time,  to  the 
Congress  of  the  United  States,  by  whom  it  was  also  rejected.  The  following 
are  extracts,  from  the  communication  presented  to  Congress,  by  Mr.  Symmes, 
on  that  occasion: 

"  It  cannot  be  forgotten,  that  no  township  for  the  purpose  of  a  college,  was 
granted  by  the  original  contract.  As  no  township  was  given  at  first,  it  will 
be  allowed,  that  the  grantee  had  a  right  to  sell  any  and  every  part  of  the  Pur- 
chase, and  he  did  sell  indiscriminately. 

"  After  three  and  a  half  years,  from  the  date  of  the  original  contract,  had 
elapsed,  and  those  lands  that  came  within  the  patent,  were  pretty  generally 
sold,  Congress  gave  a  township  for  the  use  of  an  Academy,  to  be  located 
within  the  limits  of  the  grant,  as  altered  and  designated  by  the  act  of  the  12th 
of  April,  1792. 

"  The  claim  set  up  by  Mr.  Boudinot,  to  the  College  township,  is  vague  and 
conditional;  and,  on  his  part,  the  conditions  have  never  been  fulfilled.  That 
which  he  founds  his  pretensions  upon,  is  a  document,  several,  months  older 
than  the  original  contract  itself,  and  no  lien  on  the  land,  can  thence  accrue. 
If  he  had  lived  up  to  the  conditions  of  his  contract,  which  he  by  no  means 
did,  yet  his  redress  could  only  be  personal,  against  the  grantee,  and  not  real; 
for  no  color  of  fee  could  pass,  by  the  document  which  he  holds. 

"  This  township  was  the  only  one,  which,  at  the  passing  of  the  law,  had  not 
been  broken  by  sales;  not  preserved  entire,  with  design  of  presenting  it  as  a 
College  township;  for  no  such  township  was  expected,  but  by  mere  accident, 
it  being  that  part  of  the  Purchase,  which  the  grantee  had  originally  intended 
for  himself;  but  which  was  afterwards  agreed  to  be  divided,  between  twenty- 
four  proprietors,  on  each  proprietor's  paying  a  twenty-fourth  of  the  purchase 
money  to  Congress;  and  from  this  cause  lay  unsevered  and  unoccupied,  until 
the  passage  of  the  act  of  the  5th  of  May,  1792,  giving  one  entire  township  for 
the  use  of  an  Academy." 


F. 

The  contract  between  John  Cleves  Symmes  and  Elias  Boudinot,  executed  on 
the  12th  of  March,  1788,  for  the  sale  of  an  undivided  moiety  of  the  second 
township  of  the  second  fractional  range  of  townships  in  the  Miami  Purchase, 


494  APPENDIX. 

which  had  been  reserved  by  the  said  Symmes  for  his  own  use,  in  the  terms  of 
sale  and  settlement  of  Miami  lands,  published  at  Trenton,  may  be  found  by  any 
person  having  an  interest  therein,  on  the  Records  of  Hamilton  county,  Book 
B,  pages  107-8-9. 


G. 

The  bill  in  equity  filed  by  Elias  Boudinot  against  John  C.  Symmes,  praying 
for  a  specific  performance  of  his  contract  for  the  purchase  of  an  undivided 
moiety  of  the  second  township,  of  the  second  fractional  range  of  townships  in 
the  Miami  Purchase,  and  the  final  decree  rendered  thereon,  which  ordered  the 
defendant  to  execute  and  deliver  to  the  said  Elias  Boudinot,  a  deed  conveying 
to  him  in  fee  simple  an  undivided  moiety  of  the  said  township,  according  to 
the  prayer  of  his  bill,  may  be  found  at  large  among  the  files  of  the  Circuit 
Court  of  the  United  States  for  the  district  of  Pennsylvania,  at  their  May  Term, 
1802. 


H. 

As  an  evidence  of  the  state  of  feeling  produced  at  Detroit,  and  in  the  county 
of  Wayne  generally,  by  the  provision,  contained  in  the  act  of  Congress  author- 
ising the  formation  of  a  Constitution  for  the  State  of  Ohio,  which  excluded  the 
people  of  that  county  from  becoming  a  portion  of  the  new  State,  and  attached 
them  to  the  Indiana  Territory,  the  following  letter,  addressed  to  Mr.  Burnet, 
of  Cincinnati,  is  submitted  to  the  public,  being  one  of  a  number  of  the  same 
character  received  by  him  from  different  citizens  of  Wayne  county. 

The  writer  of  the  letter,  who  is  now  in  his  grave,  was  one  of  the  most  in- 
telligent citizens  of  that  county,  and  a  distinguished  member  of  the  Territorial 
Legislature.  Others  of  a  similar  character  might  be  given,  were  it  necessary, 
but  one  will  suffice — "ex  uno  disce  omnes." 

Detroit,  August  2d,  1302. 
Dear  Sir  : —  I  some  time  since  received  your  favor  of  the  8th  of  June,  but 
have  not  till  now  had  an  opportunity  to  answer  it.      Col.  Chobert  showed  me 
a  letter  from  you  upon  the  subject  of  the  law  turning  us  over  into  the  Indiana 
Territory,  which  you  mentioned  in  your  letter  to  me. 


APPENDIX.  11.;, 

We  have  not  yet  entered  into  any  resolutions  how  to  act  in  the  bud 
The  method  you  suggest,  of  electing  member!  to  the  Convention,  I  ft.ar,  will 
be  objected  to  by  some,  upon  the  principle  of  a  doubt  of  success,  and  1 1 1  - • 
tainty  of  expences  which  must  follow  that  ivent. 

Nothing  frightens  the  Canadians  like  taxes.  They  would  prefer  to  be  treated 
like  dogs,  and  kennelled  under  the  whip  of  a  tyrant,  than  contribute  to  the 
support  of  a  free  government. 

I  have  conversed  with  several  leading  characters,  most  of  whom  disapprove 
of  the  law,  and  are  desirous  of  becoming  a  part  of  the  new  State,  if  possible.  I 
believe  they  are  generally  convinced  that  the  law  is  unconstitutional,  so  far  at 
least  as  respects  this  county,  it  being  a  plain  violation  of  the  5th  article  of  Com- 
pact contained  in  the  Ordinance  of  1787.  By  that  article,  Congress  have  re- 
served to  themselves  the  privilege  of  drawing  the  east  and  west  line  through 
the  extreme  of  Lake  Michigan,  upon  a  contingency  of  erecting  the  Territory 
north  of  said  line  into  one  or  more  states;  but  no  authority  of  passing  us  into 
another  Territory.  Should  the  western  boundary  line  stand,  regardless  of  the 
east  and  west  line  alluded  to,  the  whole  of  the  county  of  Wayne  would  be  in- 
cluded in  the  new  State;  and  as  the  law  now  stands,  the  whole  of  River  Raisin 
settlement  will  be  included  therein,  which  produces  a  division  of  our  county, 
and,  I  humbly  conceive,  its  eternal  ruin.  But  the  ruin  of  five  thousand  in- 
habitants, when  brought  into  competition  with  the  interested  ambition  of  a 
half-a-dozen  aspiring  individuals,  whose  intrigues  have  brought  us  into  the 
present  dilemma,  can  be  of  little  consequence,  according  to  the  modern  doc- 
trine of  politics. 

We  may  thank  our  good  friends,  Judges  Symmes  and  Meigs,  and  Sir 
Thomas,  for  what  is  done.  They  foresaw  that  the  county  of  Wayne  would 
be,  probably,  a  dead  weight  against  them. 

Unfortunately,  the  citizens  of  this  county  are  too  little  practised  in  false 
politics  to  answer  their  purposes.  I  did  expect  that  Congress  would  not 
readily  have  interfered  in  the  petty  political  squabbles  of  the  Territory.  But 
seeing  how  lightly  the  majority  of  that  once  respectable  body  have  treated  im- 
portant subjects,  I  am  not  surprised  at  what  they  have  done  with  respect  to  us. 

You  state  in  your  letter  that  you  cannot  believe  that  the  Convention  will 
accept  the  law  as  it  now  stands,  with  the  clogs  that  hang  to  it. 

I  differ  with  you  in  opinion  on  that  head — nay,  I  am  persuaded,  that  were 
it  ten  times  more  degrading  to  the  people  of  the  Territory  than  it  is,  it  would 
be  greedily  snatched  at,  by  a  majority,  which,  from  the  exclusion  of  the 
county  of  Wayne,  they  are  sure  of.  But,  sir,  supposing  the  county  of  Wayne 
should  elect  delegates,  and  send  them  forward  to  the  Convention,  what  secu- 


496  APPENDIX. 

rity  would  they  have,  of  a  bare  protection  ?  Would  they  not  feel  the  morti- 
fication of  personal  insults  ?  From  the  temper  of  a  majority  of  the  citizens  of 
that  place  (Chillicothe)  last  winter,  which  you  must  know  as  well  as  myself, 
I  really  believe,  that  their  persons  would  be  in  danger.  At  all  events,  I  am 
not  personally  disposed  to  make  the  experiment.  Yet  I  will  do  every  thing  in 
my  power,  to  stir  up  the  citizens  of  Wayne,  to  claim  their  violated  rights.  I 
thought  that  a  petition,  in  the  nature  of  a  memorial,  accompanied  by  an  agent, 
would  have  every  effect,  that  could  be  answered  by  sending  delegates.  If  they 
should  be  determined,  strictly  to  adhere  to  the  law,  neither  would  answer  any 
purpose;  and  if  they  felt  disposed  to  favor  us,  arrangements  would  be  made  for 
citing  us. 

I  am,  dear  sir, 

Your  friend  and  humble  servant, 
Jacob  Burnet,  Esq.  SOL.  SIBLEY. 

Cincinnati. 


I. 

SECRETARY'S   OFFICE, 
Cincinnati,  May  15th,  1802. 
Gentlemen: — 

The  last  mail  informed  us  that  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of 

the  United  States  have  refused  to  recognize  Belmont,  Fairfield,  and  Clermont, 
as  counties  in  the  North-western  Territory,  and,  by  withdrawing  their  sanc- 
tion, have  virtually  communicated  an  opinion  that  the  executive  of  the  Terri- 
tory, in  the  present  stage  of  our  government,  is  not  vested  with  the  power  of 
erecting  new  counties. 

You  are  not  unacquainted  with  the  tenure  of  my  office.  It  is  known  to 
you  that  I  derive  my  appointment  from  the  general  government ;  that  my 
pay  and  compensation  are  received  from  the  treasury  of  the  United  States  ; 
and  that  I  am,  of  course,  amenable  to  the  national  government  for  the  faithful 
discharge  of  the  duties  attached  to  the  office.  Under  these  circumstances,  my 
hand*  are  completely  tied  up,  and  I  am  restricted  from  a  compliance  with  your 
petition.  The  critical  and  delicate  situation  in  which  I  am  involved,  by  my 
desire  to  meet  the  wishes  of  my  fellow  citizens  on  the  one  hand,  and  by  a 
sense  of  duty  on  the  other,  has  given  birth  to  sensations  which  it  is  easier  to 
conceive  than  describe.    You  may  rest  assured,  however,  gentlemen,  that  your 


APPENDIX.  jot 

petition  will  be  laid  before  tbe  Legislature  at  their  next  session,  and  tbe  known 
sentiments  of  the  members  afford  just  ground  for  a  belief  that  you  will  be 
gratified  with  a  division  of  the  county. 

In  all  events,  I  pledge  myself  to  recommend  it  to  the  serious  consideration 
of  the  Assembly,  and  to  concur  in  the  measure,  if  I  continue  to  administer  the 
government. 

Accept,  gentlemen,  the  assurances  of  consideration  with  which  I  am, 
respectfully,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

CHARLES  WYLLING  BYRD. 
To  the  inhabitants  of  Hamilton  county,  residing  north  of  the  southern  boundary  of 
the  third  or  military  range,  North-western  Territory. 


K. 

House  of  Representatives,  March  31st,  1802. 

Debate  on  the  report  of  the  select  committee  respecting  the  admission  of  the 
Eastern  division  of  the  North-western  Territory  as  a  state  into  the  Union. 

Mr.  Fearing  said — he  should  oppose  this  resolution,  but  not  on  the  ground 
of  expediency.  As  the  business  had  been  urged  forward  hastily,  he  had  not 
had  an  opportunity  of  consulting  his  constituents,  to  many  of  whom  he  had 
forwarded  the  report  of  the  select  committee.  He  would  therefore  waive  any 
remarks  on  the  expediency  of  it  until  a  bill  was  brought  in,  in  the  event  of  the 
resolution  being  agreed  to,  expecting,  in  the  mean  time,  to  hear  from  his 
constituents. 

But  he  was  opposed  to  the  resolution,  on  constitutional  principles.  He 
conceived  Congress  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  arrangements  for  calling  a 
convention.  It  was  not  necessary,  on  general  principles,  or  under  the  com- 
pact, that  the  Territory,  in  order  to  be  admitted  into  the  LTnion,  should  form  a 
constitution.  By  the  Compact,  Congress  can  give  their  assent  to  admit  the 
Territory  into  the  Union  before  the  population  amounts  to  sixty  thousand. 
Their  power  extends  no  farther.  The  Compact  is  the  supreme  law  of  the 
land,  and  is  in  the  nature  of  a  treaty.  What  it  prescribes  must  be  executed; 
but,  as  to  arrangements  not  made  in  it,  they  may  or  may  not  be  made,  and 
they  may  be  made  either  by  law  or  by  a  Constitution,  as  the  Territory  may 
see  fit.  Can  Congress  exercise  power  given  exclusively  to  the  people  ?  He 
conceived  it  would  be  as  great  an  encroachment  upon  their  rights  to  say,  they 


498  APPENDIX. 

should  meet  together  in  Convention  and  form  a  Constitution,  as  it  would  be  to 
say  so  to  any  State  in  the  Union. 

Gentlemen  may  say  that  this  power  is  given  to  Congress  by  the  consent  of 
the  people.  The  printed  documents  accompanying  the  report,  if  they  mean 
any  thing,  mean  to  express  the  opinion  of  the  people.  [Mr.  F.  here  quoted 
parts  of  a  letter.]  Now  if  this  committee  at  Chillicothe  speaks  the  voice  of 
the  Western  Territory,  the  Congress  have  the  right  contended  for;  but  this 
the  citizens  of  other  towns  and  counties  will  not  admit.  What  example  will 
the  adoption  of  this  measure  hold  out  to  the  people  of  the  Territory.  If 
Congress  violate  the  Compact,  will  not  the  people  of  the  Territory  have  an 
equal  right  to  violate  it  ?  He  hoped,  for  these  reasons,  that  Congress  would, 
on  their  part,  preserve  it  inviolate. 

Mr.  Griswold,  of  Connecticut. — "  This  is  not  the  first  project  started  this 
session,  that  goes  to  a  consolidation  and  destruction  of  all  the  States.  That 
this  will  be  the  effect  of  the  present  measure  cannot,  I  think,  be  denied.  What 
is  the  condition  of  the  people  of  the  Territory  ?  They  are  not,  it  is  true,  as 
to  every  purpose  of  government,  a  State  ;  but  they  have  a  complete  Legisla- 
ture, as  fully  competent  to  legislate  as  the  Legislature  of  Maryland,  or  any 
other  Legislature  in  the  Union.  They  are  fully  competent  to  the  making  of 
all  laws  to  regulate  the  internal  concerns  of  the  government.  Now  these 
resolutions  go  to  interfere  with  these  internal  concerns,  and  to  regulate  them 
by  law.  When  the  gentleman  from  Kentucky  undertakes  to  decide  the  terms 
on  which  the  members  of  the  Convention  shall  be  chosen,  I  ask  him,  where  is 
the  power  ?  Are  not  the  powers  of  the  Territorial  Legislature  as  full  as  those 
of  the  Legislature  of  Maryland,  and  have  we  not  as  good  a  right  to  interfere 
with  the  state  concerns  of  Maryland,  as  to  interfere  with  the  concerns  of  the 
Territory  ?  I  call,  then,  upon  gentlemen  to  say,  whether  they  are  willing  to 
sanction  a  principle  that  goes  to  the  length  of  the  consolidation  of  these  States? 
We  have  the  determination  of  the  Legislature  of  the  Territory,  that  it  is  not 
desirous  of  forming  a  constitution  at  this  time.  If,  then,  we  go  abreast  of  the 
determination  of  one  Legislature,  why  not  of  another?  If  we  go  abreast  of  that 
of  the  North-western  Territory,  why  not  go  abreast  of  that  of  Maryland?  If, 
too,  you  may  legislate  for  these  people  before  they  are  admitted  into  the  Union, 
you  may  also  legislate  for  them  afterwards.  If  you  do  not  like  the  constitution 
they  now  form,  you  may  pass  a  law  for  another  Convention. 

By  a  parity  of  reasoning,  you  may  force  down  a  constitution  on  Connecticut, 
and  suy  that,  as  they  have  no  written  constitution,  you  will  give  them  one. 
Acting  under  such  u  principle,  there  can  bo  no  stopping  place — you  may  go  any 


APPENDIX.  400 

length.    If  you  interfere  with  the  authority  vetted  in  others,  you  may  go  any 

length,  and  that  consolidation  of  the  States,  whirh  some  gentleman  wish  to 
see  effected,  will  be  accomplished.  I  am,  therefore,  on  constitutional  grounds, 
opposed  to  these  resolutions.  I  do  not  inquire  into  the  expediency  of  th. 
measure.  Let  the  people  judge  of  this.  If  they  wish  a  constitution,  I  have  no 
objection  ;  but  I  would  not  impose,  upon  them  what  the  Compact  does  not 
warrant,  nor  would  I  impose  arbitrary  power  upon  them  any  more  than  upon 
any  of  the  States. 

The  report  says— "Resolved,  That  provision  ought  to  be  made  by  law  for 
calling  a  Convention  within  the  eastern  division  of  the  Territory,  composed 
of  members  to  be  apportioned  among  the  several  counties  therein,  in  a  ratio  of 

one  representative  for  every  inhabitants  of  the  said  counties,  according 

to  the  last  enumeration  of  the  inhabitants  thereof,"  &c. 

I  understand  the  project  is,  to  portion  out  the  people  into  districts  to  choose 
members  of  the  Convention,  and  I  say  that,  as  you  have  not  the  power,  it  is 

arbitrary  and  unjust. 

*  *  #  ***  *  *  * 

I  have  long  been  persuaded  that  when  gentlemen  are  determined  upon  any 
particular  measure,  they  can  readily  find  pretexts  for  it.  The  Constitution  is 
brought  to  their  aid,  though  the  fact  is,  the  Territory  existed  before  the  Con- 
stitution was  formed.  The  people  of  the  Territory  never  consented  to  it,  nor 
are  they  bound  by  any  part  of  it  which  gives  more  power  to  the  Federal 
Legislature  than  is  given  by  the  Compact.  Their  rights  under  the  Compact 
cannot  be  taken  away  by  any  provisions  of  the  Constitution  to  which  they 
were  not  a  party.  I  shall  therefore  lay  the  Constitution  totally  out  of  the 
question. 

The  gentleman  from  Maryland  and  myself  agree  in  one  or  two  points.  We 
agree  that  it  is  competent  to  Congress  to  admit  the  Territory  into  the  Union, 
before  it  has  attained  a  population  of  sixty  thousand.  If  this  were  the  sole 
object  of  the  resolutions,  I  would  agree  to  them. 

We  agree  in  another  point,  that  Congress  has  not  the  right  to  impose  a 
Convention  upon  these  people  without  their  consent.  The  question  then  is, 
whether  it  is,  or  is  not,  the  object  of  these  resolutions  to  impose  a  Convention. 
Let  us  turn  to  the  third  resolution,  which  is  calculated  in  express  words  for 
calling  a  Convention  by  a  law  of  the  United  States,  and  taking  the  population 
of  the  last  census  as  the  basis  of  representation.  If  the  principle  be  a  sound 
one,  that  we  have  a  right  to  impose  a  Convention  on  the  people  of  the  Terri- 
tory without  their  consent,  how  are  the  opinions  of  the  people  on  the  calling 
of  the  Convention  to  be  obtained  ?     How  is  their  consent  to  elect  delegates  to 


500  APPENDIX. 

be  obtained  ?  The  consent  expressed  on  the  face  of  the  petition  before  you 
cannot  be  said  to  be  a  legal  consent.  How  else,  then,  can  such  consent  be 
obtained  ?  I  answer,  in  no  other  way  than  by  an  act  of  the  Territorial  Legis- 
lature, or  by  going  round  to  every  man  in  the  Territory  and  obtaining  his 
opinion. 

If  this  be  left  undone  until  the  election  for  members  of  the  Convention,  the 
result  will  be  a  partial  expression  of  the  public  mind  ;  for  one  man  may  vote, 
and  another  refuse  to  vote.  Thus  you  may  get  a  partial  Convention,  composed 
of  a  few  demagogues.  I  say,  therefore,  that  however  defective  the  provisions 
of  the  Compact,  you  must  obtain  the  consent  of  the  Territorial  Legislature 
before  you  take  the  step  of  calling  a  Convention.  Believing  the  inevitable 
effect  of  these  resolutions  will  be  to  impose  a  Convention  on  the  Territory,  I 
am  justified  in  saying  they  involve  an  usurpation  of  power  by  the  United 
States — a  power  not  belonging  to  them.  If  the  resolutions  amount  to  any 
thing,  they  amount  to  this. 

If  gentlemen  will  first  obtain  the  consent  of  the  Territory  in  a  proper 
mode,  though  their  population  does  not  amount  to  sixty  thousand,  I  will  con- 
sent to  their  admission  into  the  Union.  I  am  disposed  to  let  them  act  for 
themselves — to  divide  or  not  divide  the  Territory  into  States,  as  they  please; 
but  I  am  against  imposing  any  thing  upon  them  contrary  to  their  will. 
They  are  more  deeply  interested  than  we  are  in  the  establishment  of  a  pro- 
per form  of  government.  They,  and  not  we,  are  to  be  bound  by  it.  They, 
then,  ought,  in  its  establishment,  to  act  for  themselves,  and  not  we  for 
them.  I  contend  that  such  a  measure  is  extraordinary  in  this  country.  I 
know  that  it  has  been  practiced  in  other  countries.  I  know  that  in  Swit- 
zerland, and  in  Holland,  the  people  were  told  by  the  Republic  of  France  they 
had  bad  Constitutions  which  required  alteration,  and  that  the  Republic, 
with  sisterly  kindness — without  asking  their  consent — imposed  conventions 
upon  them,  which  formed  entirely  new  systems  of  government ;  but  I  trust 
the  same   thing  will  not  be  done  here. 

I  do  not  think  it  necessary  to  inquire  into  the  expediency  of  this  meas- 
ure, as  I  have  no  objection  to  give  my  consent  to  the  admission  of  the 
Territory  into  the  Union,  even  without  a  population  of  sixty  thousand,  if 
wished  for  by  the  people  ;  though  I  have  no  idea  that  the  people  will  be 
benefited  by  it,  as  they  will  then  have  taxes  to  pay  from  which  they  are 
now  exempt.  But  I  do  not  consider  this  as  a  proper  objection  for  us  to 
make,  as  it  ought  to  rest  with  the  people  to  say  whether  they  are  willing 
to  pay  those  taxes. 

I  say,  again,  we  have  no  right    to    impose  a  Convention.      I  believe  the 


APPENDIX.  501 

principle  upon  which  we  take  thii  -  the  full  length  I  hare  stated, 

and  may,  if  adopted  in  relation  to  the  Territory,  be  applied  to  all  th<-  States. 
The  powers  of  the  Territory  aro,  on  thii  head,  as  complete  aa  those  of  the 
States.    If  we  interfere  with  the  first,  we  may  interfere  with  the  1 


At  a  puhlic  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Dayton,  and  its  vicinity,  held  at 
Dayton,  on  the  26th  of  September,  1S02,  a  resolution  was  adopted  unani- 
mously, and  published  by  order  of  the  meeting,  in  the  Western  Spy,  from 
which  the  following  is  an  extract : 

"We  consider  the  late  law  of  Congress  for  the  admission  of  this  Territory 
into  the  Union,  as  far  as  it  relates  to  the  calling  a  Convention,  and  regulating 
the  election  of  its  members,  as  an  act  of  legislative  usurpation  of  power  pro- 
perly the  province  of  the  Territorial  Legislature,  bearing  a  striking  similarity 
to  the  course  of  Great  Britain  imposing  laws  on  the  provinces.  We  view  it  as 
unconstitutional,  as  a  bad  precedent,  and  unjust  and  partial  as  to  the  represen- 
tation in  the  different  counties. 

"We  feel  for  our  fellow-citizens  in  the  county  of  Wayne,  who  have  relin- 
quished their  allegiance  to  the  crown  of  Great  Britain,  and  become  American 
citizens,  firmly  attached  to  the  interests  of  this  Territory;  and  we  hope  they 
may  not  be  transferred  against  their  wishes  to  the  Indiana  Territory,  at  the 
moment  they  expect  with  us  to  enter  into  an  independent  State  government, 
and  to  enjoy  the  privileges  of  a  free  people.  We  conceive  that  Congress  was 
unwarranted  in  transferring  that  portion  of  the  Territory,  against  its  consent, 
from  the  last  step  of  the  second  grade  of  government  back  to  the  first,  and 
transferring  them  to  another  government  and  another  people. 

"We  wish  our  Legislature  to  be  called  immediately  to  pass  a  law  to  take 
the  enumeration;  to  call  a  Convention;  and  to  regulate  the  election  of  mem- 
bers to  the  same,  and  also  the  time  and  place  for  the  meeting. 

"Under  the  existing  laws,  we  are  not  enabled  to  elect  members  to  the 
Legislature  and  to  the  Convention,  as  the  elections  for  both  are  ordered  on  the 
same  day,  and  as  to  us,  at  places  fifty  miles  apart." 

The  resolution  also  expressed  a  wish  that  the  Convention,  when  met,  should 
ask  of  Congress  an  alteration  of  the  Ordinance  relating  to  the  division  of  the 
Territory,  so  as  to  include  the  country  to  the  foot  of  the  rapids  of  the  Ohio 
in  one  State,  subject  to  become  two  States,  as  soon  as  a  majority  of  the  citizens 
inhabiting  the  same  might  deem  it  expedient. 


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75  cts,  paper  cover,  50 
TAYLOR'S  Manual  of  Ancient  and  Modern  History,  edit- 
ed by  Prof.  Henry;  8vo.     Cloth,  $2  25,  sheep,  2  50 

•  M          Modern  History,  separate 1  50 

"          Ancient       do            do 1  25 

URE'S  Dictionary  of  Arts,  Manufactures  and  Mines;  8vo,  5  00 

11       Supplement  to  do     do     8vo  sheep 150 

**      or  in  2  vols,  with  Supplement 6  50 

WARREN'S  Introduction  to  Law  Studies,  new  enlarged 

edition,  8vo.  law    sheep 3  50 

WILSON  on  the  Skin ;  plates,  1  vol  12mo 1  00 

WORLD,  The,  in  a  Pocket  Book ;  16mo 50 

WOMAN'S  WORTH;    or  Hints  to   Raise    the   Female 

Character,  by  a  Lady.     18mo 38 

ZSCHOKKE.    Incidents  of  Social  Life;  12mo;  Cloth ••  •  100 


g  LIST  OF  BOOKS. 

ARNOLD'S  First  Latin  Book.    12mo. 60 

«•  "     and  Second  Latin  Book  and   Practical 

Grammar.    12mo. 50 

or  2  vols,  bound  in  1        75 

"  M     Latin  Prose  Composition.    12mo. 1  00 

"  "    First  Greek  Book. 

M  "    Greek  Prose  Composition.    l2mo. 

»•  "     Cornelius  Nepos.    With  notes.    12mo.- 

*#*  Others  of  Arnold's  Classical  Series  in  preparation. 
ARNOLD'S  Lectures  on  Modern  History.    With  Notes 

by  Professor  Reid.     12mo. 125 

ADLER'S   New  German  Reader,  adapted  to  Ollendorf 's 

Grammar.    12mo.  • 100 

FORESTI'S  Italian  Reader.    12mo. 1  00 

GRAHAME'S  English  Synonyraes.  Edited  by  Prof.  Reid. 

12mo. 1  00 

GESENIUS'  Hebrew  Grammar.    By  Rodiger.    8vo.  Best 

edition. 2  25 

GUIZOT'S  History  of  Civilization.   With  Notes  by  Prof. 

Henry.    12mo. 100 

KEIGHTLEY'S  Mythology,  of  Greece  and  Rome.  18mo.        42 

MANDERVILLE'S  New  English  Reader.    12mo. 75 

MICHELET'S  History  of  the  Roman  Republic.     12rao.  •  • 
OLLENDORFF'S    New  German  Grammar.     Edited  by 

Prof.Adler.    12mo. 150 

"  "     French  Grammar.  Edited  by  J.  L. 

Jewitt.     12mo. 150 

"  "     Italian  Grammar.  Edited  by  Prof. 

Foresti.    12mo. 150 

The  System  of  M.  Ollendorff  is  rapidly  being  adopted  both 

here  and  in  Europe. 
REID'S  New  English   Dictionary,  with   Derivations  and 

numerous  improvements.     l2mo.     564  pages,  sheep.  ••  ♦•     1  00 
Already  introduced  as  a  text  book  by  the   State  Normal 

School,  and  several  leading  Academies. 
SURENNE'S  New  Standard  Pronouncing  Dictionary  of 
the    French  and  English  Languages.     12mo. 1  50 


LIST  OF  BOOKS.  9 

A  vastly  superior  Dictionary  to  all  others  now  in  use.  Con- 
tains 52,000  words. 
SEWELL'S  Classical  Speaker.     Edited  by  Prof.  Reid.— 

12mo. 

TAYLOR'S  Manual  of  Modern  and  Ancient  History.    Ed- 
ited by  Prof.  Henry.    8vo.  cloth. 2  25 

sheep. 2  50 

44                "       Ancient  History;  separate, 125 

44                "       Modern       do.          do.         1  50 

This  work  is  fast  superseding  Tytler's  and  other  compends 
of  History.     Several  colle  gesand  large  schools  have  a- 
dopted  it. 
WRIGHT'S  Primary  Lessons,  or  .Child's  First  Book.— 

12rao. 12 

WARNER'S  Rudimental  Lessons  in  Music.     18mo. 50 

44              First  Steps  in  Singing.     12mo. 25 

THOMSON'S    Seasons.  38 

CLARKE'S  Scripture  Promises.    Complete. 38 

ELIZABETH ;  or  the  Exiles  of  Siberia. 31 

GOLDSMITH'S  Vicar  of  Wakefield. 38 

44                  Essays. 38 

GEMS  from  American  Poets. 38 

JOHNSON'S  History  ofRasselas. 38 

HANNAH  More's  Private  Devotions. 31 

44              44        Practical  Piety.    2  vols. 75 

PURE  Gold  from  the  Rivers  of  W  isdom. 38 

PAUL  and  Virginia. 31 

TOKEN  of  the  Heart.— Do.  of  Affection.— Do.  of  Remem- 
brance.—Do  of  Friendship. — Do.  of  Love,  each 31 

MOORE'S  Lallah  Rookh. 38 

44           Melodies,     Complete,   38 

MANUAL  of  Matrimony. 31 

POLLOK'S  Course  of  Time. 38 

WILSON'S  Sacra  Privata. 31 

YOUNG'S  Night  Thoughts. 38 

HEMANS'  Domestic  Affections. 31 

USEFUL  Letter  Writer. 38 


10  LIST  OF  BOOKS. 

ARNOLD'S  Rugby  School  Sermons.     l2mo. 75 

LIST  OF  BOOKS.  65 

ANTHON'S  Catechisms  on  the  Homilies.     18mo. •  •  06 

M               Easy  Catechism  for  Young  Children. 06 

BURNET'S  History  of  the  Reformation.     Edited  by  Dr. 

Nares.     Best  edition.     23  portraits.     4  vols.  8vo 8  00 

"          Cheap  edition,  3  vols. 2  50 

BURNET  on  the  Thirty-nine  articles.     Edited  by  Page. 

BestEdition.    8vo. 2  00 

BIBLE  Expositor,  The.    Illustrated  with  70  cuts. 
BEAVEN'S  Help  to   Catechising.     Edited    by  Dr.  An- 

thon.  06 

CRUDEN'S  Concordance  to  the  New  Testament.     24mo. 

sheep. 50 

BRADLEY'S  Sermons  at  Clapham  and  Glasbury.     8  vo.  1  25 

M            Practical  Sermons.     8vo.. 1  50 

"  Family  and  Parish  Sermons,  comprising  the 

above.     2  volumes  in  one. 2  50 

COTTER.    The  Romish  Mass  and  Rubrics.    Translated. 

18rao. 38 

COIT,  Dr.     Puritanism  Reviewed.     12mo, 1  50 

HOOK.    The  Cross  of  Christ;  Meditations  on  our  Saviour. 

IVES,  Bishop.     Sermons.     16mo.«-. 63 

MARSHALL'S  Notes  on  Episcopacy.       Edited  by  Wain- 

wright.     12mo. 1  25 

SPENCER'S  Christian  Instructed.     16mo. 1  25 

MANNING  on  the  Unity  ot  the  Church.    16mo. 1  00 

A'KEMPIS,  Of  the  Imitation  of  Christ.    16rao. 1  00 

SHERLOCK'S  Practical  Christian.     16tno. 1  00 

SPINCKE'S  Manual  of  Private  Devotion.     16mo. 1  00 

WILSON'S   Sacra  Privata.     Complete.     16mo. 100 

CHURTON'S  History  of  the  Early  English  Church. 1  00 

PAGET'S  Tales  of  the  Village.    3  vols.     l6mo. 1  75 

SUTTON'S  Disce  Vivere,  Learn  to  Live.     16mo. 1  00 

Disce  Mori,  Learn  to  Die.     16mo. 1  00 

CHRISTMAS  BELLS  and  other  Poems.  16mo. 75 


LIST  OF  BOOKS.  1 1 

TAYLOR'S  Golden  Grove.    16mo.    50 

TAYLOR.     Episcopacy  Asserted  and  Maintained.     16mo.     1  00 

KIP'S  Double  Witness  of  the  Church.     12mo. 1  00 

GRESLEY'S  Portrait  of  an  English  Churchman. 75 

EVANS'  Rectory  of  Valehead.     16mo. 75 

EABER  on  the  Doctrine  of  Election.     8vo. 175 

GRESLEY'S  Treatise  on  Preaching.     12mo.. 125 

HOOKER'S  Complete  Works.     Edited  by  Keble.     2  vols.^4  50 

JAMES,  J.  A.     True  Christian.     18mo. 38 

44               Widow  Directed.      18mo. 38 

44               Young  Man  from  Home.     18mo. 38 

44               Anxious  Inquirer  after  Salvation.     18mo.  38 

KLNGSLEY'S  Sacred  Choir. 75 

This  collection  is  extensively  used  throughout  the  States, 

and  recently  greatly  improved. 
LIGHT  in  the  Dwelling.      By  the  Author  of  "  Peep  of 

Day,"  etc.     8vo. 1  75 

MAURICE  on  the  Kingdom  of  Christ.     8vo. 2  50 

MAGEE  on  Atonement  and  Sacrifice.     2  vols.  8vo. 5  00 

PEARSON  on  the  Creed.    Edited  by  Dobson.     Best  Edi- 
tion.    8vo. 2  00 

PULPIT  Cyclopaedia,  and  Minister's   Companion.       8vo. 

600  pages.     $2  50.    Sheep  2  75 

PHILIP,  Robt.  The  Hannahs.     18mo. 45 

44               The  Marys.    18mo. 45 

44               The  Marthas.     18.no. 45 

44               The  Lydias.     18mo.. 45 

44               Love  of  the  Spirit.     18mo.. 45 

44  Devotional  and  Experimental  Guides.      2 

vols,     12mo. a  75 

44               Young  Man's  Closet  Library. 94 

SPRAGUE'S  Lectures  to  Young  People.     12mo. 88 

44               True  and  False  Religion. 100 

SMITH,  Dr.  Pye,  on  Scripture  and  Geology.  12mo.  ••••  1  25 
SWARTZ.  Letters  to  my  Godchild.  32mo.  Gilt  edges.  38 
WILBERFORCE'S   Manual  for   Communicants.      32mo. 

Illuminated  Title,  cloth,  gilt  edges. 50 


12  LIST  OF  BOOKS. 

WAINWRIGHT'S  Music  of  the  Church.    New  Edition.        75 
WILSON'S  Lectures  on  Colossians.      12mo. 1  25 

POETRY. 

DANTE'S  Poems.    Translated  by  Cary.    Illustrated  with 

a  fine  portrait  and  12  engravings.    16mo.     Cloth. 1  50 

Silk. 2  25 

Morocco. 3  00 

TASSO'S  Jerusalem   Delivered.       Translated  by  Wiffen. 
Illustrated  with  a  portrait  and  steel  engraving.      1  vol. 

16mo.    Uniform  with  "Dante."    Cloth. 150 

Silk. 2  25 

Morocco. 3  00 

POPE'S  Complete  Poetical  Works.      Illustrated  with  a 
portrait  and  steel  plates,  (in  press.) 

"         Homer's   Iliad  and   Odyssey.      Illustrated  with 
Flaxman's  plates,  (in  press.) 
MOORE'S  Complete  Poetical  Works.     1  elegant  8vo.  vol- 
ume.    Illustrated,  10  plates.     Cloth,  calf,  and  morocco.      7  00 
SOUTHEY'S  Complete  Poetical  Works.    8vo.     Illustra- 
ted, beautiful  plates.     Cloth,  calf,  and  morocco.  6  50 
BURJNS'S  Complete  Poetical  Works,  with  Life,  Glossary, 

&c.     16mo.     Cloth.     Illustrated. 125 

"  do.        Saxony,  gilt  edges. • 2  00 

*•  do.        silk,  gilt  edges. 2  25 

"  do.        morocco,  extra. 2  50 

COWPER'S    Complete  Poetical  Works,  with   Life,  &c. 

Morocco,  extra,  2  vols,  in  1,  3  00 

do.        cloth. 150 

"  do.         Saxony,  gilt  edges. 2  25 

"  do.        silk,  gilt  edges 2  50 

MILTON'S    Complete   Poetical    Works,  with   Life,   &c. 

16mo.     Cloth.     Illustrated. 1 '25 

do.       Saxony,  gilt  edges. 2  00 

do.       silk,  gilt  edges 2  25 

do.      morocco,  extra. 2  50 

do.       Paradise  Lost.     18mo. 38 

Paradise  Regained.    18mo. 25 


LIST  OF  BOOKS.  13 

SCOTT'S  Poetical  Works,  with  Life,  &c.    Cloth.     I61110. 

Illustrated.* 1  25 

"         do.         Saxony,  gilt  edges. 2  00 

"         do.        silk,  gilt  edges. 2  25 

"        do.         morocco,  extra. 2  50 

"    Lady  of  the  Lake.    16mo. 38 

"  do.  gilt  edges. 50 

"    Marmion.    16mo. 30 

"        do.        gilt  edges. 50 

"     Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel.     lGrao. 25 

"  do.  do.  gilt  edges. 38 

HEMANS'  Complete   Poetical   Works.      Edited   by  her 
Sister.     2  vols.     16mo.     Illustrated  with  10  steel  plates. 

Cloth. 2  50 

"         do.         silk,  gilt  edges.   4  00 

"         do.         Turkey  morocco. 5  00 

RECORDS  of  the  Heart.    By  Mrs.  Lewis.    12mo. 1  00 

LORD'S  Poems.    12mo. 75 

AMELIA'S  Poems.     1  vol.     12mo.     (A  new  and  enlarged 

edition.)     Cloth,  1,25;  gilt,  1  50 

No.  1.    GERTRUDE.    Edited  by  Rev.  W.  Sewell,    12mo. 

Cloth,  75  cents;  paper  cover, 50 

No.2&3.    THE  BETROTHED.    By  Manzoni.    2  vols- 

Cloth,  $1  50;  paper, 1  00 

No.  4.    MEMOIRS  of  an  American  Lady.  By  Mrs.  Grant. 

Cloth,  75  cents ;  paper, 50 

No.  5.    LIFE  OF  SCHILLER.      By  Carlyle.    Cloth,  75 

cents ;  paper, 50 

No.  6  &  7.     SKETCHES  of  Literature  and  Literary  Men, 
By  George  Gilfillan.    2  vols.     Paper,  $  1,00,  2  vols,  in  1, 

cloth, 1  25 

No.  8  &  9.    GUIZOT'S  History  of  the  English  Revolution 

ofl640.    Cloth,  $1,25;  paper, 100 

No.  10  &  11.  GUIZOT'S  History  of  Civilization  in  Europe. 

Cloth,  $1,00;  paper, 75 

No,  12.    THE  PEOPLE,   by   M.  Michelet.      Paper,  38; 
cloth, 50 


14  LIST  OF  BOOKS. 

No.  13.     LIFE  of  Martin  Luther,  by  Michelet,    Cloth,  75 

cents ;  paper, 50 

No.   14   &  15.       GUIZOT'S   History   of   Civilization     in 

France.  75 

JUVENILE. 
BOB  THE  SQUIRREL'S  ADVENTURES,  finely  illus- 
trated.   Square  16mo.  50 
CHILD'S  FAVORITE— colored  plates.    Square  16mo. 
GEORGE'S  JOURNEY  TO   THE  LAND  OF  HAPPI- 
NESS.    Colored  plates.  75 
EDGEWORTH,  Maria.     Fire  Side  Story  Book.     16mo. 

illustrated,  50 

.   "  Moral   Tales.    16mo.,  illustrated,  or  in 

3  vols.    112 

"  Popular  Tales,  l6mo.,  illustrated, 75 

"  Waste  Not,  Want  Not. 25 

The  Bracelets. 25 

"  Lazy  Lawrence. 25 

HOWITT,    Mary — Picture  and  Verse   Book — commonly 
called  Otto   Specter's  Fable  Book.    Illustrated  with  100 

plates,  $1 ;  gilt  leaves, 1  25 

PUSS   IN  BOOTS— Finely  illustrated   by  Otto   Specter. 

Square  lfimo.  56  cents ;  extra  gilt, 75 

THE  PRIZE    STORYBOOK Consisting    of   Choice 

Tales,  from  the  best  German,  French,  and  English  Wri- 
ters.   Illustrated.     Square  lGmo. 75 

THE  CHILD'S  DELIGHT— A  Gift  for  all    Seasons.    Il- 
lustrated with  colored  steel  engravings. 50 

HOLYDAY    TALES;    containing     Pleasing    Stories   for 

Youth.     Square  16mo.,  illustrated. : 38 

VERY  LITTLE  TALES  for  very  little  Children,   large 

type,    Numerous  illustrations.      Square  32mo. 38 

"        Second  Series,    Uniform. 38 

do.        do.        gilt  leaves.  2  vols, 100 

THE  CHILD'S   OWN  STORY  BOOK.     By  Mrs.  Jer- 

ram.     Numerous  Plates.     Square  l6mo. 50 

"  do.  do.       gilt  leaves. 75 


LIST  OF  BOOKS. 


15 


LUCY  AND  ARTHUR;   Containing   various   interesting 

stories.    Illustrated.     Square  16ino.   50 

"  gilt  leaves. 7"> 

THE  WORLD  BEFORE  YOU;  or,  the  Log  Cabin.  By 
the  author  of  "Three  Experiments  of  Living,"  &c. 
lGmo.,  steel  frontispiece,   50 

BOYS'  MANUAL;  containing  the  Principles  of  Conduct, 

&c.    18mo, 50 

MASTERMAN  READY,      By  Captain  Marryatt.  3  vols. 

inl. 75 

OLD  OAK  TREE.     With  many  Illustrations .18mo     •••.         38 

ROBINSON   CRUSOE.     Pictorial   edition.    300  plates. 

8vo. 175 

YOUTH'S  Book  of  Nature .     50  plates,  square  l6mo . 75 

LIFE  and  Perambulations  of  a  Mouse.  Square  16mo.  Il- 
lustrated          62 

CLARA'S  Amusements.  By  Mrs.  Bache.  16mo.  Illus- 
trated.           50 

BLOSSOMS  (The)  of  Morality.      Illustrated  by  Darley. 

•    18mo. 50 

LITTLE  LESSONS  for  Little  Learners.  By  Mrs.  Bar- 
well.     18mo.    Illustrated. 50 

RHYMES  for  the  Nursery,  By  Jane  Taylor.  l6mo.  Il- 
lustrated.            50 

PHILIP  RANDOLPH.     A  Tale   of  Virginia.     By  Mary 

Gertrude. 38 

ROWAN'S  History  of  the  French  Revolution.     2  vols.   ••  75 

SOUTHEY'S  Life  of  Oliver  Cromwell. 38 

LIFE  and  Adventures  of  Henry  Hudson.     By  the  author 

of  Uncle  Philip 33 

ADVENTURES  of  Captain  John  Smith.     By     do 38 

LIFE  and  Adventures  of  Hernando  Cortez.    By    do 38 

ADVENTURES  of  Daniel   Boon.      By  do ••  38 

D AWNINGS  of  Genius.     By  Anne  Pratt 38 

MY  OWN  STORY,  by  Mary  Howitt 38 

THE  TWO  APPRENTICES    by  do 33 

LOVE  and  Money,                             do 38 


16 


LIST  OF  BOOKS. 


WORK  add  Wages,                           do 38 

LITTLE  Coin  much  Care,                do 38 

WHICH  is  the  Wiser?                      do 38 

WHO  shall  be  Greatest?                    do 38 

HOPEon,  Hope  Ever!                      do 38 

STRIVE  and  Thrive,                           do 38 

SOWING  and  Reaping,                     do 38 

NO  SENSE  like  Common  Sense,    do 38 

ALICE  Franklin,                                do 38 

MY  UNCLE,  the  Clockmaker,       do 38 

FIRST  Impressions,  by  Mrs.  Ellis 38 

DANGERS  of  Dining  out,        do 38 

SOMMERVILLE  Hall.            do 38 

MINISTER'S  Family,             do 38 

TWIN  Sisters,  The,  by  Mrs.  Sandham 38 

EARLY  Friendship,  by  Mrs.  Copley 38 

POPLAR  Grove,  The,                do 38 

MASTERMAN  READY,  by  Capt.  Marryatt ;  3  vols 1  12 

SETTLERS  in  Canada,  2  vols.            do 75 

CROFTOJN  Boys,  The,  by  Harriet  Martineau 38 

PEASANT  and  the  Prince,                   do 38 

LOOKING-GLASS  for  the  Mind.    Many  plates 45 

TIRED  of  Housekeeping,  by  T.  S.  Arthur 38 

FARMER'S  Daughter,  The,  by  Mrs.  Cameron 38 

YOUNG  Student,  by  Madame  Guizot,  3  vols 112 

DOMESTIC  Tales,  by  Hannah  More,  2  vols 75 

GOLDMAKER'S  Village,  by  H.  Zschokke 38 

NEVER  too  Late,  by  Charles  Burdett 38 

CHANCES  and  Changes,  by  do 33 

THE  MISSION;  or,  Scenes  in  Africa,  by  Capt.  Marryatt, 

2  vols 75 

OCEAN  WORK,  Ancient  and  Modern,  by  J.  H.  Wright-  38 
DUTY  IS  SAFETY;  or,  Troublesome  Tom.    Sq.  16mo, 

illustrated _ 25 

THINK  BEFORE  YOU  ACT-An  excellent  Tale.     Sq. 

lGmo,  illustrated 25 

JACK  THE   SAILOR  BOY— A   capital   Story.    Square 

16mo.  illustrated • 25 


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